


CV-1221

by ImHelenWheels



Series: CV-1221 [1]
Category: K-pop, Monsta X (Band), Wonho - Fandom
Genre: Action/Adventure, Aftermath of Torture, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Ambiguous Gender, Danger, Drama & Romance, Dystopia, First Kiss, First Time, Government Agencies, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, K-pop References, Kidnapping, Korean Characters, Long-Distance Relationship, Masks, Military, Military Uniforms, Nonbinary Character, Other, Pandemics, Plague, Post-Apocalypse, Rebellion, Romance, Science Fiction, Sex, Torture, Virus
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:15:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23815231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImHelenWheels/pseuds/ImHelenWheels
Summary: When a pandemic and a tyrannical leader bring a city to its knees, a rebel force is formed to smuggle vital equipment to where its needed most. In Chapter 1, Scout, a member of this force, runs into some trouble, and meets an unlikely alliance down the barrel of a gun.
Series: CV-1221 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1715878
Kudos: 5





	1. The Outrider

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, again! This is the beginning of a multi-chapter work I've been chipping away at while I've been in relative social isolation. Given the current chaos that's enveloped the world, I found writing this dystopian tale has helped process things a bit. THE IMPLIED RAPE/NON-CON DOES NOT HAPPEN IN THIS CHAPTER. I'll give y'all fair warning when it does.
> 
> DISCLAIMER: I am in NO way downplaying the seriousness of the current pandemic, nor is it my intent to trivialize it in any way. This is merely my way of working through the myriad of emotions that come with times as uncertain as these. I hope reading this helps folks the way writing it has helped me, and I sincerely hope everyone reading this is healthy and safe.

The rain shot icy bullets onto my face as I ran through the empty city streets. The bandana over my nose and mouth was near soaked-through, and it stuck to my skin with each heavy breath in, briefly cutting off my air supply. I wanted to look behind me; wanted to see if I’d gotten enough distance to be able to catch my breath, but I knew that would slow me down. I ducked down a tunnel of back alleys and climbed a rusted metal fire escape up to a low roof. I ducked down behind a massive HVAC unit, my chest burning and heaving from sprinting at a breakneck pace for so long. I worked to slow my breathing. I couldn’t give away my position.

“Come out with your hands up, citizen,” the authoritative voice cut through the quiet air, “You must return to your domicile. Come quietly and you won’t be hurt.”

“ _Yeah, right,”_ I scoffed silently, “ _I’ve heard that one before, big guy. Not on your life.”_ I knew what happened to people who surrendered to them; they disappeared, never to be seen again.

I peered down from my perch and saw the two humanoid figures I’d been running from. Their filtration masks and airtight goggles glistened damp with rain water. Their militaristic uniforms jet-black except for lettering across front of the utility vest, “NOPAH”.

The National Organization for the Preservation of American Health was started some time ago. A virus simply known as CV-1221 ran rampant across the globe, infecting and killing thousands of people. In an effort to slow the spread of the virus, a Stay-At-Home movement circulated globally, which included a curfew. We could only go outside for food and supplies, and we had to be contained in our homes by 6pm. Weeks turned to months, and months turned to years with the virus still moving steady through the population. After a time, we started to figure out why.

See, the President was only giving medical supplies and aide to his wealthy cronies and political allies, leaving a large section of the American medical and research system without access to critical equipment to treat patients, prevent spread and develop a vaccine. In the first three years of all this going down, we lost about a third of the doctors in the city’s most vulnerable communities to the virus. Many people were very not-okay with getting the short end of the stick, and their rage gave rise to our organization. I’m part of a rebel cell that intercepts shipments and runs deliveries of critical equipment and supplies through underground channels to where they’re needed most. A Robin-Hood crew, if you will. We syphoned off supplies from the wealthy and privileged and delivered them to the disenfranchised.

The President, who’d since established himself as a virtual dictator of the United States, didn’t take too kindly to this group of rebels delivering masks, gloves and other supplies to marginalized communities, so he established NOPAH in an effort to contain any and all dissent by force. I’m an Outrider, which means my job is to navigate a transport route prior to delivery to make sure there aren’t any snags like, say, heavily-armed death squads.

I stayed put until I heard the yelling fade and the sound of a Hum-V driving off. They gave up pretty damned easily this time, probably because of the shitty weather. Regardless, I got lucky. I stood up and straightened my clothes, switching out gloves before adjusting my bandana.

“Uh…hello? Is someone there?”

_“Shit.”_

I pulled the nine-millimeter pistol from my belt and whipped around in the direction of the voice. I was met with the now-thoroughly-spooked stare of a man around my age. His arms were raised, and I could see his hands shaking against the faint glow of the motion-activated light near the HVAC unit. I kept my weapon trained on him. I’d been doing this long enough to know never to let my guard down. His eyes were shut tight, his teeth gritted as if bracing for impact.

“Who the hell are you?” I barked a little more abrasively than I really needed to. I kind of felt bad. I mean, the guy was clearly scared out of his mind, but I couldn’t take any risks.

“Wonho. M-my name’s Wonho,” he shuddered, “P-please don’t hurt me. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t pull this trigger, Wonho,” As forcefully as I was demanding this, I was secretly, sincerely hoping he’d give me a valid answer. I did not want to shoot this guy. I never want to shoot anyone.

“Your armband…” he murmured. I shot a look at my right upper arm, the red sigil blazed against the stark black background, even in this dim evening light, “You’re one of the Crimson Underground, right?” I was shocked. Many people knew _of_ our organization’s existence, but not that many knew the name or recognized the sigil. We liked it better that way.

I lowered my weapon slightly, “How do you know about us?”

“One of my friends is one of you,” he paused, “Well… _was_ one of you. He was detained a couple months ago.”

“You’re friends with I.M?” he nodded sheepishly. I remembered him. He was a good Conductor. He ran some of the supply chains in the Western sector. He was a quiet man, but he was good at his job and well-liked. His capture hit us hard, “Hmm. Well, since you’re connected, I suppose I can extend a bit of trust for now,” I holstered my weapon, “But you start shouting for those NOPAH bastards and you’ll be dead before you hit the ground, understand?” His massive frame collapsed in relief, “What are you doing out? You should be in your domicile. Its not safe out here.” I tried to show a little compassion to quell the tension in the air.

“I heard the chaos outside and wanted to see what was going on,” he swept the dark brown, rain-soaked hair from his face, “I live just downstairs. Were you being chased?”

“Yeah. Got spotted by some grunts, but I think I shook them,” I was probably saying too much already, but fuck it. If he’d wanted me to get captured, it would’ve happened by now.

“Say, uh…the weather’s pretty bad out here. You must be freezing,” I looked down at my soaked clothes, “Why don’t you come downstairs for a minute to warm up,” He must have seen the skepticism in my gaze, “I promise, you’re safe with me. If you feel I’m a threat, you’re more than welcome to pop a cap in my ass.”

“Well…I am a little tired from all that running around,” I chuckled, my shoulders dropping in surrender, “Fuck it. I…sure, lead the way,” He smiled and started walking toward the door to the roof, “Just…don’t say that, again. You sound ridiculous.” He held the door open as I followed him inside.

“So what’s your nam-uh, I mean,” he caught himself, “What should I call you?” See, the Crimson Underground is _very_ secretive. It comes with the territory of trying to dodge the all-seeing eye of a tyrannical government. To maintain secrecy, the organization had very strict, specific rules. Every single member went by a code name. That way, even if we were captured and drugged with sodium pentothal, we wouldn’t expose other members. Rule number one: You _NEVER_ ask for or use a member’s birth name.

“Scout. They call me Scout,” He stopped at a door and waved his wrist at the keypad. The RFID chip implanted in his wrist caused the door to beep and slide open, revealing his apartment, “I’m impressed. I.M trained you well,”

“Sure did,” Wonho slid his shoes off and went into his bathroom, “He’d kick my ass if he ever caught me asking that.” He came back with a soft, fluffy towel and handed it to me, “Here, dry off a bit. It’ll help you warm up faster. I’ll go start some tea.” I took my drenched bandana off and ran the towel over my shaved head. I heaved off my combat boots and set them on the mat by the door, toddling my way into the studio apartment. It had one raw brick wall with a window at the far end, which a bed sat beneath. The other walls were a pale beige, but decorated with various paintings. Wonho had already made his way to the kitchenette near where I was standing, and was filling a teapot with water. He placed the pot on the small, electric cooktop, which whirred to life with an orange glow.

“Aren’t you worried?” I asked, cleaning the water out of my ears, “You could get in big trouble if they found me here, you know,” It’s true. Harboring a rebel was a pretty serious crime.

“Nah. I helped I.M out all the time. He’d come by for dinner every so often,” Wonho grabbed his towel off the counter and ran it through his hair, “He’d disappear for a few days, then come back looking like something the cat dragged in,” he chuckled, tossing the towel in a hamper before making his way to a dresser across from his bed, “I’d help patch him up before he went back to HQ.” Before I had a chance to react, he’d pulled his damp shirt over his head, revealing a side-profile of a quite-muscular torso.

I spun quickly to avert my gaze, “Gah, I didn’t realize you were changing,” I tried to find something, anything to keep myself from peeking back at him, “Let me know when you’re decent.”

“Woops! Sorry, I guess I’m not really used to having guests,” he quickly popped on a grey t-shirt and sweatpants, “There, I’m all good,” I looked over to see his smile twist into a concerned frown, “But there’s still the matter of you,” he rubbed his chin, tapping his lip with the tip of his finger, “You’ll never get warmed up wearing those soaking wet clothes…” he turned back to his dresser.

“Uh…there’s no need, Wonho. Really, I’ll be fine,” I shuddered involuntarily, “Besides, I doubt you’ll have anything that fits me. No offense, but you’re a little bit bigger than me…” I crossed my arms, gripping my fingers onto the sides of my thick, Kevlar utility vest, which had become even heavier than it usually was.

“Nonsense! Here,” he came over with a second t-shirt and a pair of basketball shorts, “These are from back in my University days before I started working out. It won’t be perfect, but they should work. You can change in the bathroom. I promise, I won’t peek,” he chuckled, “I bet its been awhile since you had an honest-to-God shower, so feel free to rinse off while you’re in there. The tea has to steep for a few minutes anyway. You can hang your vest on the coat hooks by the door. It’ll probably dry quicker that way.”

Too exhausted to fight anymore, I unbuckled the bulky, burdensome vest and gently hoisted it off my shoulders, hefting it onto one of the nearby hooks. I made my way over to the bathroom, turning hesitantly to face him, “Why are you being so nice? You don’t even know me.”

“Oh, I guess it’s just habit,” he took the whistling pot off the stove, “Besides, I really believe in what you guys are doing. I don’t know that I’d ever hack it as a member, but I figure the least I can do is try to help you out when the opportunity arises.” He grinned, waving me off, “Now go on, go get cleaned up. Everything should be ready by the time you’re done.”

“I…thanks. Thank you, Wonho,” I didn’t even know what else to say. He nodded and ducked back into the kitchenette as I softly closed the door.

I slowly slid out of my wet, dirty clothes, feeling lighter as each garment fell to the floor. I scooped them up, folded them haphazardly and set them on the toilet. I turned the shower on and stepped into the steamy cubicle. The hot water washing over my aching joints and sore muscles felt heavenly. The HQ, an underground bunker beneath an abandoned warehouse, had very little electricity, which was routed to our computers and other essential equipment. Sacrifices had to be made for the good of the cause. One of those sacrifices was hot water. I lingered in this tiny paradise, rinsing all the grime and grit of the city from my skin.

It was difficult for me to guiltlessly accept Wonho’s kindness and hospitality. I knew I shouldn’t be in his house. As far as the rest of the team knew, I was still out running the route. The Outriders usually ran these routes back and forth all though the night, and returned to report in the morning, if we returned at all. I knew the team would be wondering where I was come morning, but God help me, I was tired. Tired of running, tired of the cold and the rain. I already knew the route wasn’t going to be safe to run supply chains through, so what was the point in rushing back? Besides, the way back was probably crawling with NOPAH grunts by now looking for me. Any attempt to head back could end in capture. At least for the time being, I was safer here.

I finished up, shut the water off and climbed out into the mildly-chilly air of the bathroom. I toweled off and changed into the clothes Wonho had given me. They were still a bit big and I felt quite silly, but I was warm and dry. Couldn’t ask for much more than that. I hung my wet gear on the shower curtain rod and timidly exited the bathroom. Wonho was sitting on the bed, and the finished tea along with a couple of sandwiches sat on a nearby table. He gently patted the space on the bed next to him, beckoning me to sit, “Sorry, I don’t really have any chairs. They took up too much space.” I sat next to him, but still a safe distance away, scooping up the warm mug in front of me, “Be careful, its still pretty hot,” Wonho grabbed a piece of sandwich and popped it in his mouth, “So, how long have you been a member, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“This is year five for me,” I took a few bites of my own sandwich, which was simple, but tasty. I softly sipped my tea, “That was near the beginning of it all. I’d already been an activist for most of my life, so this was just the next natural step.”

“I.M had been to some protest’s, too,” Wonho lightly covered his mouth with his hand to hide his chewing, “He’d been hemming and hawing about joining Crimson for a while, but when shit really started hitting the fan and the hospital had to choose who to put on ventilators, that was the last straw,” he sipped the steaming cup closest to him, “We were roommates before all this. He’s like a brother to me. I really miss him,” Wonho’s gaze softened into the earthy, green liquid in his mug.

“I want to bring them back,” The words fell from my lips, almost haphazardly, causing Wonho to snap back into reality.

“Huh?”

“The detained. I want to find a way to get them out. All of them,” I took another sip of my tea, “That’s why I joined. I want to move up the ranks until I can mount a search and rescue mission.”

“But…I.M always told me that everyone they detained was probably dead…” Wonho rested his head in his hand.

“I know, I know, they trained us to think that way too, but…” I trailed off, clinking the spoon in my teacup, “I don’t know. Something in me…my gut tells me most of them are still alive, and even if there’s a remote chance they might be, I can’t just forget about them. I have to try…”

“I believe you,” my eyes turned to find Wonho looking back at me, “Hell, from what I heard and what I saw tonight, if there’s anyone who could bring them back, its you.”

“I just hope I get a chance to try,” I sighed heavily, “Every time I bring it up, they always dismiss it outright. They can’t afford to risk losing anyone else,” I took another soothing sip, “The route tonight was hotter than its ever been. I’ll be lucky if I’m not detained in the next few months,” Wonho stared back down at his tea, “Do me a favor, Wonho?”

“Uh-sure! What’s up? Need more tea?” He peered over at my cup.

“Don’t…don’t forget about him. I.M, that is…” I ran my finger over the lip of the mug, spinning the spoon around the rim, “Sometimes, the hope that someone on the outside still thinks about us…worries about us…is all that we have to go on,” I was just as taken-aback by my sudden openness as he seemed to be, “Never give up, never lose hope. The hope of the bloodline is what keeps us alive,”

“The bloodline?”

“It’s what we call the people on the outside that we’re connected to. Our family, friends, loved ones. They’re our life force; our bloodline. They are who we fight for.”

“Bloodline…I like that,” Wonho smiled, “I’ll never give up on I.M. He’s got so much mental fortitude. I know he can hang in there until you get to him.” I found Wonho’s optimism inspiring; endearing, even, “All finished with your tea?”

“Oh! Uh-yeah, thanks,” he grabbed the empty cup and plates and shuffled over to the kitchenette, setting them in the sink, “Go grab your wet clothes. I need to run a load of laundry, anyway.”

“Wonho, really, you’re doing way too much,” I half-whined, “Besides, then I’m going to have to wait for them to dry and take up even more of your time-“

“Think nothing of it! I insist,” Wonho chuckled, waving me into the bathroom, “Besides, its so nice to just have a little company around. Reminds me of the pre-pandemic days!”

I stepped into the restroom for a moment before coming out with my still-damp, grimy clothes, now neatly folded. Wonho reached out and grabbed the dirty pile of fabric, opening a small closet to reveal a stacked washer and dryer. With a few button-presses and a melodious chime, the washer whirred to life. Wonho washed his hands and went back to his bed where I had returned, my back leaning against the modest headboard, “Woah, what happened there?” He was looking at a 4-inch scar running up the inside of my right arm, “Did you get in a fight with some grunts or something?”

I stifled a laugh, “Nah, nothing so dramatic. The Crimson Underground surgically removed my RFID chip when I first joined. It’s mostly so we can’t be easily recorded and tracked by NOPAH, but its also symbolic. It shows your commitment to the cause.”

“Ah, I could see that,” Wonho mused, “I heard a rumor they don’t use anesthetic for that. Is that true?”

“Yep,” He winced, taking a sharp inhale through gritted teeth, “They don’t want to waste valuable medical resources. The only anesthetic I got was a shot of liquor and something to bite down on. I won’t lie, it still hurt like a bitch,” I smiled, “Of course, if an Outrider is doing their job right, that scar is the least painful thing they deal with.”

“I’m curious,” Wonho twisted to face me, “And you totally don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but…what’s your worst scar so far?”

“Oh, I don’t mind,” I lifted the baggy t-shirt, turning to the side so Wonho could get a better view of the massive scar that ran from the base of my armpit down to my hip. The raised mark branched off into smaller threads in some spots, and ranged in color from pale white to deep red-violet.

“Holy SHIT,” Wonho fell back slightly before leaning in slightly to get a closer look, “What the hell did you do?”

“It’s a pretty good story, actually,” I put the shirt back down and turned to face him, “I’d been an Outrider for about a year at that point, and they gave me a route to run downtown. It was my first major route, and I was pretty anxious to prove myself. Well, downtown is pretty hot on a good day, and that was…well…not a good day. One minute, everything was pretty quiet, the next, I was being chased by a squad of FIVE grunts,”

“Five?? Woah, five against one aren’t the best odds…” Wonho rested his chin in his hands like a child listening to a particularly good bedtime story.

“No, they sure aren’t. I don’t think I’ve ever run that fast in my life,” I looked up briefly, searching my brain for the rest of the story, “I had made my way up to a roof much like the one you found me on. They had me surrounded on all sides and were moving in closer and closer by the second. There was only one way out…”

“You DIDN’T…” Wonho’s mouth hung open in shock.

“Yep. I jumped. Fell five floors into a dumpster. Scraped the fire escape on the way down, which is what made that scar,” Wonho covered his mouth with both hands, “Here’s the wildest part: I heard them coming downstairs to try and recover and detain me.”

“No way! They still wanted you?”

“Yep. They would’ve detained my dead body if they could. I was pretty out of it, but I remember climbing out of the dumpster. I don’t know if it was fear or pure adrenaline, but I managed to crawl over to a nearby manhole, lift the cover off and dive into the sewers.”

“And they couldn’t find you?” The excitement in Wonho’s voice was contagious.

“Nope. They ran down the street thinking I’d made a break for it, somehow. I passed out in the sewers for a while, came to and hobbled my way back to HQ,” I shrugged, “I got myself that scar, three broken ribs, a bunch of glass embedded in my torso and a nasty concussion. It was pretty gnarly. I got benched for a week to recover.”

“Only a week??” Wonho’s head tilted to one side, “A beating like that could take up to a month to recover from.”

“Oh, it did,” I hugged one of my knees, “We were really short on Outriders at the time, so I went back out WAY earlier than I was supposed to. My stitches kept popping. The medics were so pissed,” I cracked up a bit thinking about the grumpy old EMT having to stitch me back together after every run, “Needless to say, I definitely proved myself, though it didn’t exactly go the way I was expecting.”

“You’re right, Scout. That’s an awesome story!” Wonho looked at the coatrack where my vest, and my gun, were hanging. He pointed to the pistol, “Have you…ever killed someone?”

“Oh God, no!” I chuckled, “To tell the truth, I haven’t even fired the damned thing on a run. Not once,” I sighed, “Thankfully, I’ve only ever shot paper targets. I hope I never have to use it.”

“Well, that’s one streak I’m happy not to break,” We both laughed at the ridiculousness of this whole evening, “I’m glad I’ve gotten to get to know you a little bit, Scout,” My face felt strangely warm and I smiled into the shirt sleeve, catching the faint hint of men’s cologne in the fabric. I managed to get a hold of myself, and laid back against the headboard again, “So, tell me about yourself, Wonho. You got any interesting scars?”

“Well, I do have a scar on my thumb from opening a can of beans, once…” I tried in vain to stifle my laughter, “Hey! That was a BRUTAL can of beans!” He giggled, “Really, though. My life is pretty boring, to be honest. I owned my own café before all this went down. I had to close it after the shutdown, so I work from home, now. Data entry. So riveting,” The syrupy sarcasm coated his voice in quiet resentment, “I do have my own dirty secrets, though,” He shot a sly grin my way before diving into the drawer under his bed.

“Dirty secrets? Take it easy, Wonho. We just met.” Wonho pulled a box out from behind the drawer and popped it on the bed before sliding the drawer back into place, “This isn’t your porn stash, is it?”

“Are you kidding? No way,” Wonho flushed before opening the box. Inside was a DVD player with no less than 30 DVDs, “After all the streaming platforms started playing propaganda, I scoured the internet and got hold of as many of these as I could. I knew it was only a matter of time before they started banning stuff.”

“Woah, Wonho, there’s some great stuff in here!” I flipped through the plastic cases. He had amassed an impressive collection of now-forbidden classics ranging from, _“It’s a Wonderful Life,”_ to, “ _WALL-E,”_ but one larger case caught my eye, “Woah, is this what I think it is?”

“Yep,” Wonho beamed proudly, “’ _Planet Earth’._ That one was a pain in the ass to find, but I had to get my hands on it. I wanted to be able to remember what the planet looked like before all this bullshit happened,” He paused for a moment, “Do you…want to watch it together? It’ll be a bit before your clothes are done, anyway.”

My face lit up with excitement, “I would love that. It’s been years since I watched a documentary.”

Wonho walked over to the TV mounted on the wall across from his bed and plugged a few cords into the back. He pushed a button on the player and slid the delicate disk into the machine. After some strained whirring, the title screen flashed up on the TV, “Phew, it still works!” I scooted myself into the corner where the bed met the wall and Wonho shimmied in next to me on the bed.

“Wait, Wonho,” I put my hands up slightly, “You might not want to get so close to me. I might be a carrier for the virus…” This man had already given be quite a bit. I didn’t want to give him a thank-you-gift of a deadly illness.

“It’s alright, Scout. We’re both clean. Besides, if I were going to catch the virus, I would’ve gotten it on the roof. I’m not that worried,” Wonho smiled, and hit a button on the ancient-looking remote.

I watched as the opening credits scrolled over scenes of deep, vast oceans and tropical rainforests. It seemed like something so foreign to me now, after so many years of living in a polluted, run-down hellscape. I imagined what it would be like to swim in the ocean; to breathe clean, fresh air without needing a mask or a bandana over my face.

“I’d almost forgotten how beautiful other places were,” I felt myself trailing off.

“Yeah. Makes you wonder if they’re better now that humans aren’t mucking everything up.”

“I think so,” I sighed heavily, the weight of fatigue slowly taking over, “I bet it’s amazing,” The combination of the soft bedspread and the heat of Wonho’s sturdy frame next to me was too much comfort to bear, and I found myself struggling to keep my eyes open.

…

I jolted awake to a buzzing at my wrist. The sun was peering through the blinds of the nearby window. I pulled my arm out from the blanket I was now under to see the blinking screen of my communicator. I blinked bleary-eyed to make out the name printed across the screen, “Shownu”.

_“Fuck.”_

I leaned over to see Wonho asleep on the floor nearby. I swiftly and silently crept over him and shuffled over to the balcony door, which was across from the kitchenette. I eased the door open and made my way outside, gently shutting it behind me before pressing the green button on my communicator to answer the call, “This is Scout.”

“SCOUT JESUS CHRIST DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG I’VE BEEN TRYING TO REACH YOU?” The voice boomed from the tiny communicator so loudly that it clipped the speaker at some points. I winced, thinking of the sleeping gentleman inside. “Sorry, sir. I was a bit, uh, tied up. Had to get to a low-profile location.”

The voice seemed to calm a bit, “Scout, its well past sunrise. You should’ve been back at HQ by now. What’s going on?”

I thought, for a brief moment, about making something up, but Shownu had been my direct supervisor since I joined. He could spot a lie from miles away, “I’m…I’m at an outsider’s domicile. I-“

“YOU’RE WHAT?” The booming voice returned.

“He’s a connect. I got about halfway down the route before things got too hot to handle and he offered sanctuary until things cooled off.” I tried to steady my nervous breathing, “He’s a friend of I.M. He’s on the level.”

“What’s the name?” Shownu’s voice was steady, but firm.

“Won Hoseok. Goes by Wonho,” My delivery was almost robotic. I learned Wonho’s full name after seeing some of the certificates he had hanging up near his desk. I heard faint typing on the other end of the line. Shownu was, no doubt, looking this guy up in the global database, “All these years working together, Shownu. You really think I didn’t do my homework?”

A sigh on the other end of the line, “No, Scout. I’m just double checking. I know how reckless you can get for the sake of a mission.” A pause, “Well, well, sure enough. I.M had him listed as an emergency outside contact. Looks like he’s clean.”

“Told you,” I quipped.

“Okay, okay, you were right. You got damned lucky. Don’t get used to it,” A smug smile crossed my face. Shownu hated being wrong, “So the route was hot?”

“Oh yeah. Three grunts on me within 45 minutes. Thankfully the shitty weather was on my side, but I wouldn’t risk a caravan on this one. Not for a while anyway.”

“Shit,” He sighed heavily, “We’re running out of clean routes in that sector. I’m going to have to figure something out.” I leaned on the balcony’s bannister, “Look, just get back as soon as you can so I can take your formal report. Plus, I’ll need you to finish up training these two freshman Outriders. I’m starting them on runs next week.”

“Next week??” I tried to keep my voice muffled, “There’s no way they’ll be ready next week, Shownu! One of them can barely climb a ladder and the other one can’t find his ass with both hands!”

“Look, I know, okay? I’ve got no choice! You’re one of two Outriders left in our squad, right now, and the faster we get these routes run, the sooner we can get the next shipment out. Mission first.”

“Right. Mission first. I’ll get back as soon as I can,” I checked the time. 10:30am, “No promises on ETA. The walls have ears.”

“Rodger. Be safe. _Noch Weiter._ ”

“ _Noch Weiter,”_ I pressed another button on the communicator to hang up the call.

“Good morning, sunshine…” a groggy Wonho toddled through the door, a cloth mask over his face, rubbing the sleep-sand from his eyes, “I see you found the balcony.”

“Gah, Wonho! Don’t scare me like that!” I clutched my chest.

“Sorry, sorry! I heard your voice out here and thought I’d check in on you,” he pointed to the communicator on my wrist, “I didn’t get you in trouble, did I?”

“Nah. Normally when someone falls off the radar, its…well…not good. He was just checking on me,” This wasn’t the first time I’d gotten a tongue-lashing from my supervisor. If anything, this was fairly benign, “He did google you, though.”

“Oh, really? I’m surprised he found anything other than, ‘painfully boring data analyst with a love for push-ups and old movies.’” Wonho smirked, “So I guess you’ll have to head back soon.”

“Yeah. Duty calls,” I sighed, “I do wish I could stay longer. I feel bad I fell asleep so early, last night.”

“I don’t blame you at all,” Wonho reassured me, “With what you guys deal with, I figured you could use the rest,” he looked down at his feet, “Will I ever see you again? I’d like to…I mean, if that’s possible…” All of a sudden, he was the timid, shy, meek man who I nearly shot in the head on the roof the night before.

“Well, now that I know where you live…” I peered up and down the alleyway, up toward the roof, then back to him, “I think I could make something work.”

“But won’t it be dangerous? I don’t want you risking your safety.”

“Hey, let me worry about that,” I took a few steps toward him, “Besides, this is part of my district. I’m in this area all the time, anyway,” I ran my hand across my head, “As long as you don’t mind me randomly popping by late at night.”

“Oh, I’m a night-owl anyway,” Wonho exhaled, “Like…this is too early to be alive.” He held the door open and we both went back inside.

A few moments later, I was fully dressed in my gear, now clean and smelling faintly of artificial flowers. I strapped my cool-but-dry vest back on, covertly checking to make sure everything was still in its place. I carried my boots over to the balcony door, “Thanks again, Wonho. For everything. Your kindness and hospitality won’t soon be forgotten; by me or anyone else in Crimson Underground.”

“Wait, how are you going to leave from the balcony?” Wonho followed me out the door into the cool, afternoon air.

“Well, I can’t exactly walk out the front door, can I?” I chuckled, pulling a grappling hook from my belt, “I’ll repel down, pop into the nearest manhole and follow the sewers back West. HQ isn’t far from here.”

“Oh, okay. Well, is there anything you need before you go?” The bashful look in his eyes betrayed him. He was trying to stretch this out just as much as I was.

“You know what? There is, actually.” I found myself suddenly nervous, and attempted to mask it with pure bravado, though I’m not sure to this day how well that was working out.

“Sure! Anything!” Wonho’s hands were clasped together.

“Well, are you sure? I wouldn’t want to put you out…” I hesitated. This was not a typical request, and I wasn’t sure what he would say.

“Yeah, Scout! Name it. What can I get for you?” He reached his hand back for the doorknob.

“Actually…God, this is awkward, but…could I get a hug goodbye?” I immediately regretted the words that fell from my mouth, “Gah, nevermind, you absolutely don’t have to do that. I’m sorry, that was a really dumb thing to ask, I-“

My humiliated soliloquy was interrupted by a pair of big, burly arms wrapping tightly around me, pulling me into a warm embrace, “I’m so glad you asked. I didn’t have the balls to ask myself, but I’ve been wanting to do this all morning.” His chest vibrated against the side of my face, and his hair softly tickled the top of my head. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been touched like this. Since the virus swept its way through the city, physical affection became an act of violence.

“Wonho, you didn’t have to do this. Aren’t you worried about getting infected? I’m out there all the time. I told you, I might be a carrier…” My hands came to rest on his chest as I looked up at him.

“With how many times I helped I.M over the years, I would’ve probably been infected by now if I was going to get it,” Wonho ran his hands up and down my back, “Besides, I can’t remember the last time I hugged someone like this. It feels…really nice.” He finally pulled away, gripping both my shoulders, “Be safe, okay? Come back anytime. I’ll be here.”

“Thanks again, friend,” I tossed my grappling hook up to the edge of the roof, hooking it against the lip. I climbed over the guardrail and planted my boots on the brick wall.

“Oh, Scout?” I looked over to where Wonho was still standing, “What does _Noch Weiter_ mean? I remember hearing I.M say it a few times, and I heard you say it on the phone earlier.”

“It’s German. It’s the Crimson motto,” I anchored my hands on the rope, “It means, ‘Even Further’.”

“Oh, cool,” Wonho pulled the door to his balcony open, “I’ll see you soon, Scout.”

“See you soon, Wonho.” I slid down the wall, looking up just in time to see the balcony door close.


	2. The Leader and the Lark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A week has passed, and Scout is preparing to run her next route, but a clever plan from a sly colleague promises to make things a bit more interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! Welcome to Chapter 2! THERE IS NO RAPE/NON-CON IN THIS CHAPTER! As I said before, that kind of content will come with ample warning. 
> 
> Disclaimer, as always: I am in no way trying to downplay the seriousness of the current global pandemic. This is merely my way of processing all the emotions that come from something like this. I sincerely hope you are all safe and healthy, wherever you are.
> 
> Sit back, relax and enjoy!

“So, Scout! I heard you had a little romp with an outsider!” The mocking voice was unmistakably his. I lowered the book I was reading to reveal the eager, curious eyes of Kihyun. His sly smirk breaking into mischievous laughter. Kihyun was my coworker, of sorts. He and I were the only two fully-trained Outriders in the squad. Kihyun’s cleverness and ingenuity combined with his slim and speedy frame made him an excellent Outrider. It also made him quite the nosy-Nancy around the HQ. If there was any office gossip or goings-on, Kihyun simply needed to know about it.

“Don’t you have a report to finish or something?” I lifted my book to block my face.

“Ah, so its true! Come on, now! Spill the beans! Was he hot?” My petulant colleague walked to the head of my bunk, climbed the ladder and rattled my shoulder.

“Kihyun, for the last time, no, I didn’t ‘have a romp’ with anyone. I took refuge in a connected outsider’s house for the night because my route was crawling with grunts. That was over a week ago. Why are you still asking about it?”

“But surely something MUST have happened,” Kihyun propped his elbows on the bunk’s stiff mattress, “I mean, you were there the whole night…” he trailed off, his head tilting to the side to chase his wandering imagination.

“Nothing happened, babuya,” I clapped the book shut near his face, sitting up on the bunk and dangling my legs over the side, “He made me tea, I took a shower, slept and left. That’s it.”

“Wait, YOU SHOWERED THERE?” Kihyun’s eyes grew wide and his body bobbed up and down in excitement, “I knew it! I knew it! He totally saw you naked!”

“Kihyun, even the bathrooms _here_ have doors that lock,” I buried my head in my hand, “Surely you aren’t _that_ dim. Now if you don’t mind, I have some work to do before my next run, tonight.”

“I’m not leaving until you at least tell me if he was hot or not,” Kihyun popped off the ladder, leaning up against it and crossing his arms, “Come on, Scout. I’m dying of anticipation over here! You can’t tell me you didn’t at least check him out a little bit,” Kihyun still had the mind of a teenager. I’m pretty sure he’d make a pass at anything that moved.

“What, you running out of hookups in the Northern sector?” I sat up, chuffed with myself.

“Hey, that was ONE TIME,” he huffed, “Stop trying to change the subject!”

“Okay, look, if I describe him for you, will you leave?”

“Yes, yes! I’ll leave you alone, promise!” I couldn’t trust Kihyun as far as I could throw him, but I saw no harm in obliging his childish fantasies, especially if it got him out of my hair.

“Well,” I sat back, propping myself up with my arms, “He was about an inch taller than me. He had dark brown hair that was longer on the top and clipped shorter on the sides,” As I pictured him in my mind, my description began to wander into more vivid territory, “His face was slender with a strong jaw. His chest was…broad, very broad. He definitely works out. He was built like a tank from the neck down.”

I’d become so lost in my own mind that I hadn’t even noticed Kihyun positively vibrating with excitement.

“Oh, you like him,” Kihyun stretched out each word tauntingly, “You are _sprung,_ son.”

“I am not,” I protested, “I was simply-er, describing him. Like you asked me to.”

“No way, Scout. I know that look on your face all too well,” Kihyun smirked, “You’re the kind of thirsty not even a gallon of water could quench.”

“Damn it, Kihyun. I gave you what you wanted, now leave me be, you nosy bastard!” For once, Kihyun’s intuition wasn’t entirely off the mark, but I was trying to quash the feelings that had been budding in my brain. I couldn’t afford to be distracted by something as silly as a crush, especially now. Besides, relationships involving Crimson Underground members rarely ever worked out. Most folks couldn’t handle the constant absence and painful secrecy. That, or their partner was detained not long after the relationship started.

“Okay, okay! I’ll go,” Kihyun walked across the small room to the door before turning back to face me, “Look, all I’m saying is, shit sucks in the world right now. We have to find whatever joy and excitement we can, ya know?” It was an oddly serious tone for someone like him, “I mean, I can’t remember the last time _I_ got laid. I can’t imagine how long it must be for you.” I threw my pillow at him as he scampered from the room; his shrieking giggle echoing through the metal hallway.

“Kihyun, quit your cackling! It gives me a headache! Last I checked, your most recent report wasn’t in my mailbox, yet.” Shownu’s stern voice boomed from the other side of the hallway. His footsteps became louder and louder until he stopped by the door to the bunkroom, “Ah, Scout. Good to see you. I wanted to let you rest for your next route, though it looks like that was interrupted, too.”

“It’s no trouble, sir. I was awake already, anyway,” I hopped down from the top bunk and walked over to grab the pillow from the floor, “I was reviewing practice reports from the trainee cadets.”

“And?” Shownu’s voice perked with hope, “Any improvement?”

“Well, Jooheon’s getting a little better with his verbiage, though he’s still missing some basic details,” I grabbed the clipboard that was sitting on my desk, which was at the foot of the bunkbed, “Hyungwon’s reports are always stellar, if a little on the wordy side,” I flipped to the second page on the clipboard, “I just wish I could get the guy to run a mile without running out of breath.”

Shownu chuckled, “Well, as I recall, you were the same way when you were a cadet,” I cringed at the painful memory of nearly passing out multiple times while building up my strength, “They’re both hard-working and dedicated to the cause. The rest can be developed. It just takes time.”

“Time we don’t really have,” My shoulders slumped slightly.

“True enough. You’re all doing your best. I can’t ask for much more than that,” He cleared his throat and straightened his collar, “You ready to go over the route for tonight?”

“Ready whenever you are,” I grabbed a pen from my desk and tucked it into the pocket of my coverall, “Lead the way!”

Crimson Underground Headquarters was basically a bunker buried beneath an abandoned warehouse. The compound was shaped like a three-pronged fork, with a common area which split off into three hallways: an administrative sector, a training sector and a dormitory sector. I walked with Shownu to the 2nd door on the left in the administrative sector, which was his office. A large table sat in the center of the room with a three-dimensional model of the city stretched over it. A smaller desk sat in the back corner, and a drafting able on the opposite wall with a flat map taped to it. We both stood on either side of the center table as he used a laser pointer to wind through the tiny streets and alleyways.

“So, I know the route last week didn’t exactly work out, but I suspect it’s because of a new guard post that was established just southwest of the area where they started chasing you. You probably just got intercepted by a routine night patrol.”

“That would explain why there were only three of them and not five or six,” I mused, “So how are we going to mitigate that?”

“Well,” his laser flickered to another area of the map, “I figure since you ended up right around here anyway, we can bypass that guard post by just doing a straight shot west and then bending north after the 3300 block. If its late enough at night, we’ll miss the patrol and it’ll be smooth sailing.”

I looked at the route my supervisor had plotted out. Sure enough, it sailed right by Wonho’s apartment building. I felt a little flicker of excitement catch in my chest, which I tried my hardest to curb, “Simple, elegant, sensible. I like it. Sounds like a plan to me. I’ll go gear up,” I turned to leave the office.

“Say, Scout?”

I spun around.

“That connected outsider you crashed with a week ago; he lives on this route somewhere, right?”

I froze briefly, startled by Shownu’s sudden mention of him. I knew Shownu was a great strategist, but could he read minds, too? What else had he picked up from my brain?

“Uh, yes. His apartment was right about here,” I pointed to the tiny building on the map.

“Good. When you run, tonight, I want you to try stopping by there, again.”

“You- you what?” I scratched the back of my neck, “You want me to go back there? Why?”

“Yes, if you don’t mind. This Wonho guy treated you well from what I read in your report. If he’s willing to, he could be a real asset to us on supply deliveries. We need all the help we can get, and I think pulling in some connected outsiders may give us the edge we need. At least see if you can bring it up with him,” Shownu smirked slightly, “Besides, I imagine he’ll be happy to see you, again.”

“Oh Lord, Shownu, not you too! I’ve gotten enough grief from Kihyun as it is!” I turned my head in embarrassment.

“I’m only kidding, Scout. Relax,” Shownu chuckled, plopping down in the chair at his desk, “Now, any other questions before you head out?”

“Actually, sir, there is one thing…” I walked to the other side of the large table, leaning slightly against it for support.

“Sure! What’s up?” Shownu propped his head up on the desk with his elbow.

“Well, sir, I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and I’d like your clearance to take on a personal project…” My hand wandered to fiddle with a snap on one of the pouches of my utility belt.

“Okay, I’m listening,” Shownu grabbed a canteen from his desk and screwed off the cap, tipping it to take a swig.

“I want to plan a search and rescue attempt for the troops detained by NOPAH.”

Shownu nearly choked on his sip of water. He wiped his mouth, clearing his throat, “Scout, that’s suicide. We already lost them. We can’t afford to lose you, too.”

“See, I don’t know, Sir. You always trained me to trust my intuition, and something in my gut tells me our troops are alive. I think I can come up with a way to get them back,” Shownu sighed, leaning back in his chair and running his hands over his face, “You always talk about how short-manned we are. We’ve got the two recruits training. Just imagine how much better off we’d be if we could get some of our more experienced troops back. Think of the intel we could get on what happens to detainees!” I paused, “If we could get I.M back in the West, that whole supply chain would bust wide open. We’d more than double our deliveries and you know it,” Shownu’s hand moved to rubbing his stubble-clad chin, “Look, at least let me work on a plan and present it to you and the other commanders. You’re free to shoot it down if you see fit, but I’d like the opportunity to at least try,” I straightened up, hiding my shaking hands behind my back, “Please.”

“Well,” Shownu stood back up to meet my eyes, “You never ask me for much, Scout. With everything you’ve been doing for this squadron, the least I can do is give you this one thing,” I tried in vain to stifle my triumphant smile, “I can’t promise it’ll be approved for implementation, but you’ve got my clearance to put together a mission proposal. I want a draft on my desk in two weeks for a review, understood?”

“Yes, sir! Thank you so much, sir.”

“Anytime, kid,” Shownu checked the time on his communicator, “Now go gear up. I want you out running the route in half an hour.”

“Yes, sir,” I clapped my right arm across my chest to salute and bowed slightly, “ _Noch Weiter.”_

 _“Noch Weiter,_ Scout. Run well,” Shownu saluted, and I turned and left toward the equipment lockers to get my running gear.

The tinny clack of the opening metal door echoed in the empty locker room. I grabbed the flashlight and grappling hook and attached them to my utility belt. I pulled my pistol from the top shelf along with the fully-loaded clip. Clacking the clip into the bottom of the gun, I safely tucked it into its holster on the belt, snapping it shut. Next was the black beanie and leather-padded, fingerless gloves to assist with grip. Because it was colder outside now, I was wearing our cold-weather uniform, which was essentially our warm-weather uniform with a black coverall over it to provide an extra layer.

“Hey, Scout! You in here?”

The unmistakable singsong voice of Kihyun rattled my focus, “Kihyun, what have I told you about sneaking up on me?” I pulled a few cloth bandanas to use as face covers and shut the locker door, “What do you want? I’m a bit busy at the moment.”

“Relax, I won’t keep you long…” Kihyun leaned his shoulder on the locker near mine, crossing his arms triumphantly, “So, I heard you’re seeing loverboy again, tonight?”

“Loverboy? Kihyun, for God’s sake…” I turned to face him, “Wait, I literally _just_ left the briefing with Shownu. How’d you hear about it so fast?”

A crafty grin slid over Kihyun’s face, “It might have been my idea.”

“Wait, what?” I propped myself with one arm against my locker.

“Well, I heard Shownu on the phone talking to some other big-wigs about our routes getting more and more bogged down with grunts,” Kihyun struck a triumphant pose, “So I brought up the idea of getting connected outsiders in the bloodline to help shelter Crimson Underground members. Safe havens, if you will.” He stepped closer to me, “From there, it was just a matter of Shownu reading your report and putting two and two together.”

“Kihyun, you’re either the most clever or most foolish person I’ve ever met,” I chuckled, “Seriously, though, it’s a great idea, and I think it’ll really help the mission if we don’t have to travel these long routes in one shot.”

“Exactly!” Kihyun beamed, “And if it gets your frigid ass laid, then I’ll have accomplished two missions in one.”

“Whatever, asshole,” I playfully shoved my precocious coworker as I made my way out of the room, “I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“You’ll thank me someday!” Kihyun yelled after me, “Run well!” He giggled and ducked into the locker room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we have it! Chapter 2 isn't terribly eventful, but I felt it necessary to give some of our key players a proper introduction. What do you think Scout's big plan will be to get I.M back? Let me know in the comments! 
> 
> As always, I'm open to suggestions for different character arcs, and I frequently run polls on twitter that affect how things progress. If you want to get involved with those, or even just want to know the INSTANT the next chapter goes live, follow me there! @thehelenwheels


	3. A Flutter of Wings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout departs on their assigned route run with a mandated waypoint, and something blossoms in the light of the full moon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, again! Welcome to Chapter 3! THERE IS NO RAPE/NON-CON IN THIS CHAPTER.
> 
> Disclaimer as always: I am in no way attempting to make light of the current global pandemic. This story is purely for entertainment purposes, and to process the emotions that can come in an uncertain time such as this. I sincerely hope you are all healthy and safe.
> 
> Grab a soothing bevvy and a cozy blanket and enjoy!

I lifted the heavy storm doors of the faux-cellar that disguised the headquarters’ entrance and slipped out onto the city street. A steamy vapor seeped out of the sewer grates and danced along the barren pavement. I kept my back against the brick of the buildings, leaving only to dart across the streets which split each block. I followed the route due West like Shownu instructed. It felt strange to be taking such a direct course. Normally, these routes were long, complicated roundabouts with lots of doubling back and looping from block to block. By comparison, this felt less like a route run and more like an evening jog with a little extra danger thrown in.

When out on a run, your focus is constantly being pulled in a million different directions. Every little sound could be a grunt in hiding. Every flicker in the corner of your eye could be a camera catching your appearance to report to NOPAH officials. I learned after a while to duck under every window that had a light on or the blinds up. I learned where the spaces between buildings were so I could duck away at a moment’s notice. There was good reason why I was always exhausted after a run; your nerves are absolutely fried by the end of it all.

I remembered when I used to go for walks around the city at night when I couldn’t sleep; long before all this crazy shit happened. I’d pass certain places and remember my friends and I stumbling home drunk, singing to the streetlights. I had no way of knowing what happened to those people after all this went down. For all I know, they succumbed to the virus. I hadn’t seen most of them in years.

Crossing one more street West, things started looking familiar for different reasons. Though it wasn’t raining tonight, I could still pick out different landmarks: an old bodega sign on a corner, pink curtains in a window, everything getting closer and closer to where I was when Wonho found me on the roof of his building. My heart leapt with anticipation and excitement when I suddenly saw his building on the opposite corner to where I was standing.

I picked up my pace, darting across the street toward the brick building. I felt my entire body warm up as I reached for my grappling hook.

_Please be awake, please be awake, please be awake._

My mind was racing as I took aim and tossed the hook up to the roof, latching it right near his window. I couldn’t chase the thoughts from my mind anymore. Maybe this was a need for some kind of friendship outside the squad, maybe it was more, but all I wanted in that moment was to see him again. I gripped onto the rope and climbed up four floors to his balcony. I carefully swung one leg, then the other over the guardrail, using the leverage of the rope to retrieve my hook from the roof. I wound the rope and clipped the hook back onto my belt. I straightened my clothes before tip-toeing over to the door.

The blinds of the patio door were closed, so I couldn’t see much, but I did catch the faint glow of the TV through the window by his bed. I didn’t want to alarm him, but there was only one way to let him know I was here. I gently, but firmly, knocked on the balcony door.

I didn’t hear any change from inside. I didn’t want to wake him, but even when I put my own feelings aside, this was pretty important. I took a deep breath, then knocked again; this time, a little harder. Nothing.

Just as I was about to turn away and give up, I saw the glow of the TV disappear, and then I heard footsteps; quiet at first, but getting progressively louder as they got closer to the door. The handle turned and the door cracked open just wide enough to see a fraction of his face, the rest covered by a blue face mask. I realized that it was probably more than a little suspect to have someone dressed in all black with their face concealed knocking on your back door, so I reached my hand up slowly and pulled my beanie off, revealing my shaved head, “Surprise! Remember me?”

“Scout!” Wonho flung the door open and pulled me into a powerful hug, picking me up and spinning me around before finally setting me down again, “I thought I’d never see you again! Come in, come in! It’s freezing out here.” He took my hand and led me inside while I tried to catch my breath and quell the incredible wave of happiness that washed over me the minute his arms wrapped around me. “ _Snap out of it, Scout. Come back to reality. You’re here for the mission.”_

I took my boots off at the back door and set them outside on the patio. I immediately removed my gloves and bandana and stuffed them in my pockets before running into the bathroom to wash my hands thoroughly. I came out to Wonho drying his hands in the kitchenette. He’d removed his mask and put it in the nearby laundry hamper. He looked up at me and instinctively smiled, “Sorry I kind of got a little ahead of myself there. To what do I owe this awesome surprise? It’s not my birthday, yet.” He chuckled, filling his tea kettle and popping it on the stove.

“What, I can’t just stop by because I wanted to see you again?” I was surprised at my own words, “ _Did I just…flirt? Jeeze, Scout, get a grip. You sound creepy.”_

Wonho covered his face with one hand in embarrassment, “Well, uh-yes, I-I suppose that could be a thing…” Even in the dim light, I could see the blood rushing to his cheeks. I tried to distract myself from how adorable he looked when he was flustered, “Well, actually, there is another reason I came by. This time around, I’m here on orders.”

Wonho’s mouth hung open in shock, “Wait…your boss told you to come back here?”

“Well, yes,” Wonho walked around the island in his kitchenette to get closer to me, “My superiors read my report and saw how kindly you treated me. We-We need your help, Wonho. We can talk about it over tea,” I smirked as the teapot began to whistle. Wonho darted over to turn off the stove. He poured the hot water into two cups, brought one over to me, and gestured toward the bed, where we both sat, setting our cups on an end table he’d moved nearby, “What does an organization like Crimson need from someone like me?”

“Okay, so…” I fiddled with my fingers in my lap, “The long and short of it is our routes are getting overrun with NOPAH grunts. It’s getting more and more dangerous to do entire runs to the hospitals and research facilities and back in one shot,” I paused, searching my mind for the right words, “My colleagues came up with the idea of designating safe haven waypoints along our routes, where folks in the bloodline could house the Outriders and Supply Trains to keep the grunts off their trail,” Wonho nodded, resting his chin on his hand in thought, “You absolutely don’t have to do this, Wonho. It’s very risky and-“

“I’ll do it,” Wonho nonchalantly leaned back on his hands.

“Wait, are you sure?” I leaned in closer to him, “If you’re caught harboring us, you could be detained, tortured, even killed.”

“I understand. I still want to do it.” Wonho’s voice was steady, serious, unwavering, like I’d just asked him to hop on one foot and not to risk his life, “Though, I don’t have much storage space for medical equipment or anything.”

“The deliveries would be hidden underground. You would just be sheltering people,” I grabbed my teacup and took a sip of the steaming liquid, “It wouldn’t happen all the time; just when the guards ramp up their patrols. You’d only be housing a maximum of two people at a time, and just until it was safe to keep moving,” I paused to catch my breath, “I’ll be honest, I was not expecting you to agree so quickly.”

“Well, like I told you last week, I want to help,” Wonho sipped his own tea, “If this will help the doctors and scientists; if this will help _you_ , I’m up for it,” Wonho exhaled slightly, “Besides, its no different from what I would do for I.M before he was detained. I know he would want me to do this, too.”

“Speaking of I.M…” I took another sip of my tea, “I had a conversation of my own with my supervisor.”

“Oh?” Wonho leaned forward again, “About what?”

“I asked for clearance to develop a plan for a search and rescue mission…” Wonho’s face twisted in brief confusion as he set his teacup back on the table, “And it was granted.” It took Wonho a minute to process what I’d said. His hands slowly rose to cover his mouth, “There’s no guarantee the mission will actually get approved. It still has to go through a few channels, but…” I sighed, “It’s a big step forward.”

“Scout, that-that’s amazing news,” Wonho’s voice wavered slightly and he cleared his throat to try to disguise it, “Have you thought about what your plan is going to be?”

“I have it pretty well together in my head,” I ran my finger over the lip of my teacup, “I just have to get it written down in a way that will appease a bunch of bigwig higher-ups,” I took another sip of my tea, “It’s a pretty, um, ambitious plan.”

“Do tell! Well, if you’re comfortable sharing that information, that is,” Wonho grabbed his tea and tilted the cup to his lips.

“I’m going to get myself detained.”

Wonho nearly spat out his tea, “Wait, you’re going to what?” He choked.

“My plan is that I’m going to purposefully get detained,” I tapped my finger on the outside of my glass, “I’m going to have a GPS implant placed in my body so Crimson can track where I end up. From there, a team of our best and brightest will infiltrate the compound and rescue whoever is still alive.”

Wonho gently set his teacup down and turned himself to face me, “You’re talking about offering yourself up as bait to those thugs.”.

“Not bait, really. More like a homing beacon,” I said, “It’s the only way we can figure out where they’re holding people.”

“But what if they hurt you?” Wonho’s voice was rife with genuine concern.

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take,” I set my cup down and rubbed the back of my neck, “In all honesty, I probably will be hurt, but I can take it,” I patted the side of my torso where the scar was, “I’m a pretty tough kid, remember?”

“But what if they kill you?” Wonho’s voice broke slightly.

“Unlikely,” I chuckled, “NOPAH thinks the rebels are an endless well of insider information waiting to be cracked. You can’t get any information out of a corpse. Besides, our organization has some pretty badass people in it. I’m thinking they’d have me and the detainees out of there long before they did me in.”

Wonho paused, taking a deep, shaky breath, “There’s really no other way?”

“None that I can think of.” I sighed, “Look, don’t worry, okay? It’s going to be a bit before any of this happens. I still have to go over this plan with my boss and he has to go over it with his boss and a bunch of other important people. There’s a good chance they won’t even let me do this, but I really hope they do. I know what its like to lose someone you care about, and if there’s a way I can bring even one person back, I want to do it.”

“I understand,” Wonho sighed thoughtfully, “You won’t hear me trying to talk you out of this. I can tell it’s really important to you,” He ran his hand through his hair, “I’m still going to be worried about you the entire time you’re gone, but I know you’ll get through it, and I’ll be right here ready to celebrate with you when you do,” He cleaned up both our mugs, “So, are you falling asleep on me while we watch another forbidden film, tonight?”

“Uh-I, um…” I hid my face with one hand to mask my rapidly-flushing cheeks, “I can’t tonight, actually. I’m running a route for the next shipment.”

“Ah, duty calls,” I could catch the faint hint of disappointment in Wonho’s voice.

“Yeah,” I looked at my communicator, “Holy hell, its nearly 3am! I should let you get to sleep, Wonho,” I stood up and pulled a clean mask from my pocket, strapping it to my face.

“Aww, but I’m not sleepy at all,” Wonho playfully whined, his voice taking on a childish tone.

“No buts, young man. It’s a school night,” We both looked at each other for a moment before bursting into fits of laughter, “Wow, I really showed my age there, huh?”

“Hey, I remember having to go to school. I’m not _that_ young,” Wonho grabbed a cloth mask from his coat closet and popped it over his nose and mouth, “I’ll walk you out.”

The full moon shone brightly overhead, casting an ethereal glow over the deserted alleyway. I’d replaced my fingerless gloves and Wonho leaned against the patio door, watching me strap on my boots and check through my equipment. I could see a faint cloud of vapor puff through my mask and into the cold night air. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Wonho’s gaze turn upward. The moonlight danced across his frame; now slightly hidden under a distressed denim jacket he’d thrown on to brace against the cold. Even with a large part of his face and body covered up, he was beautiful. I’d spent so much time this past week trying to stifle my feelings for him, and for what? For once, Kihyun had a point back at HQ. Life is so short and so shitty at some points; we may as well find small pockets of joy where we can, right?

“ _But this rescue mission…”_ My mind wandered on its own, “ _If you fall for each other now and you don’t make it back, you will absolutely shatter him.”_ As much as I wanted to deny it, the risk was definitely there. I’d grown to care for Wonho very much in the short time I’d known him. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt him. Being in the Crimson Underground meant risking the heartbreak of anyone and everyone in your bloodline by putting them through the pain of losing you. There was a reason many of the members ended up cutting off contact with most of the people they cared about before they joined. We were landmines waiting to go off. The least we could do was minimize the casualties.

“Wow, the moon is really pretty, tonight,” Wonho’s voice brought be back into the present moment, “You can even see a few stars, too. That’s probably one of the best things to have come out of this whole pandemic. I’ve grown up here all my life, and until this whole shitstorm started, I’d never really seen the stars,” He looked over at me, “So, I hesitate to ask, any timeline for when I’ll see you again?”

“Soon,” I sighed, “I wish I had something more concrete, but that’s the most I can promise.”

“I’ll take what I can get,” I could see his eyes crinkling from the smile hidden under his mask, “I know we haven’t known each other very long, but you’ve given me something to look forward to. It definitely makes my days a little more exciting never knowing when you’re going to knock at my patio door.” I giggled softly, turning to face him. His eyes lit up with a bittersweet excitement, “Does this mean I get to hug you again?”

“Well, sure. That sounds nice.” I held my arms out and closed my eyes in anticipation.

“Okay, but I’m going to be slower about it,” I felt his hand slide slowly around my waist to the small of my back, pulling me in closer to him, “I want to savor the feeling in case I don’t see you for a while,” I felt my chest flush against his, and my arms fell naturally over his shoulders. One of his hands slid up and down my back while the other anchored itself at the base of my spine. I could feel my entire body tingling with an electric dopamine rush, and in that moment, all fear and worry disappeared from my mind. This felt right; it felt natural and easy. I felt my own hand run up the back of his neck until I was raking my fingers through his hair. He pulled away slightly and pressed his forehead to mine.

“Scout?” I could feel his warm breath through his mask.

“Ye-Yeah?” I stuttered, trying in vain to settle my racing heartbeat.

“I really want to kiss you right now,” My heart leapt in my chest, “Would that be okay?”

“Wonho, I-,“ I ran my hand down the side of his head, “I really like you. Hell, I’ve been thinking about you constantly since we met, but it’s hard to be with someone like me. I-I don’t want to hurt you,” My thumb gently caressed his temple.

“Anytime we let ourselves fall, we risk getting hurt,” Wonho unhooked one side of his mask, letting it fall to one side to reveal the rest of his face, “But that’s a risk I’m willing to take, if its alright with you,” I could feel his heart pounding against my chest. I smiled, moving one of my hands to my own mask, taking one loop off my ear, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

With a tenuous, gentle move, Wonho lifted my chin with his fingers and pressed his lips to mine. His lips were full and soft, and my hand slid down to gently cup the side of his face. This was the first time I’d kissed someone in years, and the feeling of completeness was intoxicating. After a few beautiful moments of bliss, I felt his mouth pull away from mine, his hands coming to rest again around my waist. I exhaled sharply before opening my eyes to see him smiling back at me.

“No fair,” I finally spoke after catching my breath, “You didn’t tell me you were a good kisser, too. Damn…I’ve got some work to do.” He chuckled softly, “Hey, don’t put yourself down so quickly. That was fantastic. I haven’t felt this happy in a long time.” Pulling a pen out of the pocket of my coverall, I grabbed Wonho’s hand and hastily jotted a number on the back of it, “This is the number to my communicator. Texting is best, obviously, but I’ll try to call you when I can,” I grabbed both sides of his face and planted one last firm kiss on his lips, “I’ve got to get going. I’ll see you soon,” I walked over to the edge of the balcony, throwing my grappling hook to the opposite roof.

“Sounds good. Be safe! I’ll see you soon,” I looked back one last time before leaping off the balcony and swinging to the other roof. I spent the rest of my route leaping from roof to roof; a huge, contented smile plastered across my face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At last, the tension breaks! What do you all think of Scout's rescue plan? What would you do in that situation?
> 
> Reminder: I'm always polling for plot points on my twitter. Follow me if you'd like to have a say in what goes on in my stories, or if you just want to know the minute a new chapter goes live! @thehelenwheels
> 
> If you want a soundtrack to our tale (or you're just curious what I listen to when I write), check out the "Mellow Jams" playlist made by "Faith Grenade" on Spotify. 
> 
> Thanks again for reading!


	4. Quiet Dawn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout gets a moment of solitude to absorb what's transpired over the past few weeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! This is a short chapter, so I'll be adding Chapter 5 fairly soon after this is up to keep things moving. 
> 
> No rape/non-con in this little bit. Enjoy! <3

The entire rest of that night’s run was spent in a half-distracted haze. I couldn’t get Wonho’s kiss out of my mind. I could still taste him on my mouth. I kept trying to relive the moment over and over as I chased the sunrise back to HQ. It felt like he’d awakened something in me I assumed was long dead. I felt limitless; I felt like I could run for days and never get tired; I felt iron-clad, invincible. The other shoe may drop, eventually, but for the time being, I was perfectly content to live in this lightness while it was here.

I repelled down the final roof and looked to either side of me to make sure the coast was clear before ducking into the cellar door I’d left from the night before. I waltzed down a series of steps before coming to an elevator disguised as a utility closet. I stepped through the steel cabinet doors, pushing a few buttons on the keypad hidden inside. With a shudder, the elevator began its descent and I dropped my back against the wall, pressing my hand to my chest to quiet my racing heartbeat.

As the rickety elevator continued its descent, I made the seemingly-obvious-but-startling realization that, soon enough, I was going to come in contact with my colleagues again. I was so consumed with the euphoria I was feeling, I hadn’t even stopped to think about my squadron. Should I make them aware that this relationship is happening? Should I just tell Shownu? Should I tell no one and conduct business as normal, hoping against hope the people I live with and spend all my time around wouldn’t notice the dopey smile on my face every five minutes?

Relationships, especially with outsiders, tended not to work out so well. If a relationship was made public to the squadron, it could be seen as a possible source of distraction. I’d seen Crimson Underground members get put under a massive microscope because they made their relationships public. Everyone, from supervisors to colleagues, would scrutinize their every move; making damned sure that their newfound love wouldn’t compromise the mission. I certainly didn’t want that to happen to me, but I didn’t want to feel like I was lying, either.

“ _Okay, Scout. Calm down. Think rationally. This whole thing just started. You aren’t even sure exactly what this is, yet. As far as you know, it was just a kiss between two affection-starved fools.”_

I resolved not to _hide_ this whole thing, per se, but to keep it on a need-to-know basis. If someone asked, I’d tell them, but keep my head down and my mouth shut, otherwise.

The elevator slowed to a stop, and I stepped out onto the main floor. Early morning at HQ was always my favorite time. Most folks were either asleep or coming back from runs, so the whole main floor was quiet; almost peaceful. I walked over to the Admin hallway and peaked in to Shownu’s office to see if he was at his desk yet. The window in the locked door revealed the room empty; not surprising, since Shownu usually did physical training at the HQ’s gym in the early morning.

I strolled to the dormitory hallway and into the locker room to drop off my gear. I’d no sooner put away my belt, gun and vest when I felt two short, sharp vibrations coming from the communicator on my wrist. I instinctively lifted my arm to look at the glowing screen, which was now flashing a simple message from an unknown number:

**_“Hey you! Thanks for popping by, last night. You made my week._ ** **_😊”_ **

And, just like that, my heart jumped into my throat and the blood rushed to my cheeks. I ducked behind my locker door and did a little happy dance the way teenagers do when their crush acknowledges their existence. I kept looking back at my wrist, waiting to find out I was just seeing things and that last night was some wonderful dream. I pulled up the tiny keyboard on the vid-screen and gently tapped each letter with my fingertip:

**_“My heart’s still dancing. Go to sleep, silly! We’ll talk soon. <3”_ **

I hit the “Send” button before I could give myself a chance to realize how incredibly corny that response sounded. I imagined him laying awake in his bed, the sun peaking through the nearby window. I wondered if he was feeling the same rush I was. Not wanting to attract too much attention to myself, I clicked the locker shut quietly and crept across the hall to my dorm room.

I could barely make out Kihyun’s sleeping form in the dark dorm room as I snuck over to my desk. Thankfully, Kihyun usually slept like a brick, so I could slip out of my coverall and into some boxer shorts pretty easily without waking him. I climbed the ladder to my own bunk and crawled under the thin blanket. Just as I was starting to drift off, I felt the same telltale buzzes at my wrist:

**_“Aww, okaaay. I will. Rest well. See you in my dreams._ ** **_😉”_ **

_“Oh, thank God, he’s corny, too,”_ I chuckled to myself, setting my alarm and drifting off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, this chapter ended up being really short for some reason. Hope it was lovely all the same. Don't forget, you can follow me on twitter to keep up to date on the moment chapters publish, and participate in polls that may have some bearing on future plot lines! @thehelenwheels is the handle!


	5. Learning to Fly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout is in the final stages of training two new Outrider recruits when she gets an...interesting distraction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, friends! I meant to post this a little sooner than now, but some real-life stuff has gotten me a bit distracted. Thank you so much for reading!
> 
> No Rape/Non-Con in this chapter! Just a bit of cuteness. Enjoy!

“Scout! Scout, wake up!” A familiar voice shouted too-close to my ear.

“Kihyun,” I rolled away from him, “My alarm hasn’t gone off. What time is it?”

“Uh, its…early, but that doesn’t matter,” Kihyun grabbed my shoulder and rattled it back and forth, trying to pull me to this side of consciousness, “Time to get up! I know you ran your route last night and saw loverboy! You have to fill me in! Tell me everything,” I rolled back to face him, my eyes open and shooting daggers into his slim frame.

“You’re really not going to leave me alone until I get up, are you?”

“Nope,” Kihyun smirked playfully, hopping off the ladder and shoving his hands in his pockets, “Besides, your alarm was about to go off anyway. I’m not a _complete_ asshole.”

I checked my communicator. Sure enough, he was right. I sat up and swung my legs over the side of the bunk, rubbing the fatigue from my eyes, “What did you say you needed from me again?”

“I need to know what happened last night!” Kihyun grabbed my workout clothing, a t-shirt and some basketball shorts, off the nearby chair and threw it to me, “Tell me everything!”

“Well,” I slid my legs into the shorts, hopping off the top bunk and pulling them the rest of the way up, “It was a pretty uneventful run, actually. No major snags or snafus, no unwanted guests. Couldn’t ask for more than that,” I pulled the new t-shirt over my head, grabbed the clipboard off my desk, took the pen still clipped in my coverall pocket and began jotting down my report notes.

“Oh, come on! Don’t play dumb, you know what I’m talking about!” Kihyun moved in front of me, leaning his head forward to catch my gaze, “What happened with loverboy? I know Shownu told you to go back to his place, last night.”

“Oh, you mean Wonho,” I shot a glance up at him before returning to my paperwork, “Yeah, things were a huge success there, too. He said he’d be happy to help us out on the supply runs,”

“And?” Kihyun clapped his hands together.

“Nothing else to report, Kihyun. My mission was successful,” I put the pen back in my coverall on the chair and slid my sneakers on.

“I don’t buy that for a second,” Kihyun mused, “Something happened, last night. I can tell. I can’t quite place it, but you seem different, today. You’re hiding something from me.”

“I can assure you, I’ve given you all the mission-critical information you need,” I smirked and headed across the hall to the locker room, Kihyun scampering behind me.

“But what about the non-mission-critical stuff?” Kihyun’s characteristic whine followed me to my locker.

“Well that’s not something you need to know right now, is it?” Kihyun’s pathetic pout almost made me feel guilty for stringing him along like this, “Look, anything else that happened on the run today is on a need-to-know basis, and you just don’t need to know, yet,” I grabbed my weight-lifting gloves and belt from my locker and shut the metal door, “I promise, when there’s something you need to know, I’ll tell you, okay? You know I hate to disappoint,” I decided to stop by Shownu’s office before heading to the gym, “Are you actually going to work out with me, today? I’m taking the trainees through some conditioning. They could use the company.”

“Gosh, I would, but I’ve got to, uh, meet up with Shownu about my last run…” Kihyun trailed off, “Come to think of it, I should go get my report for that, now. I’ll see you later, Scout!” Nothing got Kihyun off my back faster than the threat of a workout. I waved him off and walked over to the administrative hallway, knocking on the open door to Shownu’s office, “Hello, sir! Scout reporting!”

“Ah, Scout! How’d everything go, last night?”

“Excellent, actually,” I straightened my stature, keeping my hands interlocked behind me, “The run was squeaky clean front to back. Not a grunt in sight.”

“Wonderful,” Shownu exhaled with relief, “I guess we’ll plan the supply run for around the same time next week,” He jotted something down in a small notebook he always kept on him, “And what about your visit with Wonho, how’d that go? Is he willing to help us?”

“Very much so,” I couldn’t help but smile a bit, “He’s looking forward to it, actually.”

“Perfect! You’ll remain the point-of-contact between him and us. We know he’s on the level, but I see no real reason to get the whole squadron in on it. You already know when the supply runs happen, so you can just contact him a little ahead of time and let him know who’s coming and when,” Shownu took a sip from the mug of coffee sitting at his desk and wrote more notes down, “I take it you have his contact information?”

“Yes, sir. We exchanged numbers last night,” I didn’t realize how suspect that sounded until I noticed a soft smirk forming on Shownu’s face, “For-for mission purposes, of course,” I tried to laugh it off.

“Of course,” Shownu’s veiled sarcasm sent a panicked shock through my system, which he must’ve noticed, “Relax, Scout. Even if your relationship with Wonho becomes more than just the mission, I really don’t care,” he stood from his desk, walking over and clapping a hand on my shoulder, “As long as you’re focused when you need to be, that’s all I can ask for. The rest is your business and yours alone. Who am I to deny my most dedicated runner the opportunity at some shred of a personal life?” He walked back over to his desk to grab his notebook, “So, heading to the gym?”

I was still a bit taken-aback by Shownu’s momentary transparency, “Uh-yes. Yes, sir. I’m running through some PT with the recruits.”

“Sounds good! Don’t beat ‘em up too hard. I’ll talk to you when your report’s ready. See you then! _Noch Weiter_!”

“ _Noch Weiter_ , sir!” I saluted, strapping my right arm in a fist across my chest and walking over to the training sector.

The training sector was home to a shooting range, a classroom-like space with a pitifully-small library of training literature and a modest gym room used for physical training. The gym had a couple of old treadmills, some weight racks and benches, two pull-up bars and a small climbing wall to practice grapple-throwing. It wasn’t anything special, but it got the job done. As I walked in, I noticed the recruits weren’t there, yet. I checked my communicator. Sure enough, I was a bit early. I walked over to an empty spot on the gym floor and started stretching to warm myself up.

A few minutes later, I heard footsteps walking hastily toward the gym. 

“We’re here, we’re here,” Jooheon was first through the door. He had an athletic build, a square jaw and scruffy brown hair that was longer on the top and shorter on the sides. Jooheon had dropped out of secondary school to work for his father’s construction company in the time before the pandemic. He wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box, but he was very physically capable as a trainee recruit. Jooheon looked behind him, puzzled, “Huh? I swear Hyungwon was just behind me a minute ago…” Not two seconds later, a taller, thinner man sprinted through the door, panting heavily.

“Jooheon-ah, why’d you leave me behind?” Hyungwon wiped his ear-length, shaggy hair from his face. Hyungwon was working at his family’s travel agency to pay his way through law school in the time before, and was definitely more intellectually-inclined, “I swear, I’m never going to be cut out for this running stuff,” His shoulders slumped and his gaze lowered. I’d definitely noticed Hyungwon compared himself to Jooheon quite a bit; likely leftover competitiveness from his law school days.

“Remember what I said before, Hyungwon,” I stood up from where I was stretching and walked toward the two men, who’s posture straightened, “Crimson Underground strives for well-rounded members, but we all definitely have our own strengths and shortcomings, and that’s okay. Being an Outrider isn’t always about being the fastest or the strongest…”

“Yeah, hyung,” Jooheon put his arm around Hyungwon’s shoulder, “Sometimes you have to be really cleaver and strategeous! Right, Scout?” Jooheon’s enthusiasm was boundless, even if his vocabulary wasn’t.

“Strategic, Jooheon. Strategic,” I chuckled softly, “That’s exactly right, though! Every Outrider has their own style of running routes. A signature, if you will,” I stretched my arms behind my head, “I mean, Kihyun can run rings around me, but my reports tend to be more comprehensive than his are. We both still accomplish our mission; we just do it in different ways. It’s all about playing to your strengths while always working hard to improve where needed.” I clapped my hands together in front of me, “Speaking of improvement, let’s get to work! You’ll start with two miles on the treadmill, then we’ll do some grappling hook practice on the climbing wall. Understood?”

“Yes, Scout,” the two chimed in unison. Just as I was about to dismiss them, I was startled by the familiar buzz of my communicator.

“Great. Get started, then. I’ll come check on you in a few minutes. _Noch Weiter!”_

_“Noch Weiter!”_ The two men made their way to the treadmills to start their run. I went into the nearby supply closet to check my communicator:

**_“Hey, you! I hope you’re getting some good rest and I’m not bothering you or anything. I was just thinking of you and thought I’d let you know you look great today. I mean, I can’t see you, but I’m sure you look great! Have an awesome day!”_ **

Sure enough, it was Wonho. Maybe someday, I’d be able to read a text from him without blushing. This was not that day.   
Feeling a bit playful, I tapped a few buttons on the screen of my communicator to activate its built-in, front-facing camera. None of us in the squadron could figure out why our communicators had this feature. We all assumed it was part of the cellphones the communicators were made from, and that it was kept there to record any interactions with NOPAH back when it was first established. It wasn’t the most high-tech camera, but it did the job. I held my wrist up to train the camera on myself, gave a soft smile and tapped another button to take a picture. I looked haggard to say the least; our PT clothes were not the most flattering, but I attached the photo to my reply, anyway:

**_“You’d never bother me!_ ** **_😊 I’m in the gym doing some PT. I look awful. Haha! You have a great day, too. I’ll call you later.”_ **

I went back out into the gym quickly so as not to look too suspicious. The trainees were busy on their respective treadmills, and I set to work rearranging the climbing wall markers for their grapple exercise. By the time I’d finished setting everything up, both cadets had finished their runs.

“Wow, Hyungwon, your mile time is getting a lot better! Great work! Now grab the grapples I’ve set out for you two,” They each went to a spot on the shoddy gym mat and grabbed a grappling hook on its shorter training rope. Hyungwon looked up nervously at the small-but-mighty wall, “Relax, man. You’ve got this!”

“Uh, I dunno…The last time I tried to do this I almost hit you in the face…” Hyungwon looked down at the hook, turning it back and forth.

“I’ll have to tell you the story of my first time with a grapple, sometime. I’ll just say it involved the back of Shownu’s head and a decent-sized scratch,” I chucked at the memory of inadvertently grazing my supervisor with a hook my first time. What was mortifying then was hilarious, now. I walked between the two men, “I’ll be behind you this time. Remember, its not always about brawn. Play to your strengths!”

Jooheon was first to throw. He whirled the hook in circles above his head and heaved it up onto the ledge of the wall, where it latched with ease. Hyungwon looked even more nervous, “It’s okay, Hyungwon. Focus on the task. Use that brain and strategize,” Hyungwon snapped out of his overwhelmed daze and looked up at the wall. Just then, his eyes lit up. He took aim and threw his hook with a labored grunt, latching it on a drainage pipe that ran from the ceiling to the top of the climbing wall, “That’s it! You got it on the first try!” A proud smile blazed across the trainee’s face as he tugged on the secure rope. I grabbed a grappling hook of my own, latching it to the top of the wall, “Now let’s climb this bad boy!”

We all climbed up the first time together. After repelling back to the bottom, I spent the rest of the PT session watching each of them climb up again and again, giving them advice on foot placement and technique. By the end of everything, both men were glazed with a heavy veil of sweat.

“Okay, that seems good for today. Great work, both of you,” Hyungwon and Jooheon helped pack up all of the equipment and set everything back to the way it was, “So, your first run is happening at the end of this week. How are you guys feeling?”

“I’m a little scared we’ll run into those NOPAH guys…” Jooheon tugged on his shirt to air himself out, “I definitely don’t want to get detained or anything.”

“Yeah, me either…” Hyungwon trailed off, wiping sweat from his brow.

“That’s a totally valid feeling to have,” I reassured them, “Do you remember what to do if you see them?”

“Run like hell?” Jooheon giggled.

“Well, sort of, yeah.” I stifled my own laughter, “More importantly, run steady. Don’t blow out all your energy trying to go as fast as possible. You’ll tire out too quickly. Run steady, zig-zag between buildings as much as you can and stay out of the open. Hide when you can, get up to roofs when you can. In all that heavy-ass equipment, they’ll less likely to chase you if you just stay nimble.” I checked the time on my communicator, “Perfect, its right around lunch time for you guys. I want you both to do a clip each at the firing range a couple nights this week to tighten your aim. You likely won’t need it, but you can never be too prepared. We’ll do this grapple exercise again day after tomorrow, and you’ll have the day before your first run off to rest up. For now, you’re dismissed. _Noch Weiter!”_

_“Noch Weiter!”_ The two men gave the Crimson Underground salute, which I returned, and headed off to the locker room to shower and change. I finished up my own workout, left the gym and went to my dorm room to grab a towel so I could shower off. As I was walking into the dormitory hallway, my communicator buzzed again:

**_“I didn’t know that communicator thing could take pictures! What a nice surprise! You look pretty damn gorgeous, actually. Guess I’ll return the favor. I have a video conference call for work today. Ugh. I feel like a tied ham in this thing.”_ **

Below the message was a chest-up selfie of Wonho, sporting a white dress shirt and a slim, black necktie. His hair was combed, parted in the center to just barely dust across his eyebrows. His eyes were looking off to the left and his lips were jutted out in a contemptuous pout. I could still make out the muscular definition of his shoulders, chest and upper arms, even through the obscuring dress shirt. I ducked into my dorm, checked to make sure the coast was clear, and stared slack-jawed at the photo for what felt like an eternity. It had been a long time since I was this physically-attracted to anyone, much less someone with a great personality to boot. I realized that I should probably respond to his text before Kihyun inevitably popped in the room, so I tapped out the only thing that came to mind in the moment:

**_“Hot damn, you’re sexy.”_ **

I paused to look at the photo again before my brain snapped to, “ _Wow, Scout, really? Do you need to go get some water? Because that was just pure thirst.”_ I hastily typed out a follow-up message:

**_“Woops! That sort of slipped out. You look so handsome! Sorry you have to get all gussied up like that. I can’t remember the last time I had to wear dress clothes. Lol. I hope your meeting is quick and painless. I gotta go shower. I’ll give you a call before dinner. Does around 5pm work for you?”_ **

I said a quiet prayer to anything holy that I hadn’t completely blown my chances with this guy by sounding like a superficial asshole. I unlatched the communicator from my wrist and plugged it into a cord that was already plugged into the wall to charge its battery. I searched through my dresser drawers to find some clothing; black sweatpants and a black tank top, slid my feet into my shower sandals and made my way to the locker room.

Compared to the shower I’d had at Wonho’s apartment a little over a week before, this was decidedly less pleasant. My entire body shuddered against the dribbling, chilly water as it leaked through and around the showerhead. I washed up as quickly as I possibly could, anxious to get back to my communicator to see if Wonho had replied to my message, _“Lord, look what you’re turning into,”_ I thought, _“Waiting anxiously for texts, daydreaming of the next time you see him…You’re sounding like Kihyun.”_ I chuckled through my chattering teeth as I stepped out of the cubicle, toweled off and changed.

After a quick check in the mirror to make sure nothing was on backwards, I shuffled back to my room, carrying my gym clothes and damp towel with me. As I got closer to the room, I saw a familiar silhouette lingering a bit too close for comfort to my desk.

_“Shit.”_

I slowed and quieted my steps until I was leaning against the doorframe, ready to strike. “Finding interesting reading material, you nosy fuck?”

Kihyun jolted in surprise and spun around to face me, “Gah, Scout! You scared the shit out of me!”

“I’m still wondering what the hell you’re looking at,” I walked past him to drop my dirty linens in a hamper by the dresser, “Think before you answer. Your life may depend on it.”

“Your communicator went off. I was just trying to make sure it wasn’t Shownu or one of the guys from Transport trying to get in touch with you,” Kihyun raised his hands in slight surrender, “That’s all, I swear!”

I hastily strapped the communicator back onto my wrist and checked the screen. The beginning of Wonho’s reply was included in the notification. I tapped to open the entire message:

**_“Hehe! Hey, I don’t mind being called sexy. Not gonna lie, you made me blush._ ** **_😉 Five sounds great. I’ll be waiting! <3”_ **

“Kihyun, did you read this message?” There was a tone of grave seriousness in my voice, “I promise I won’t be mad, but I need to know.”

“I-uh, yeah. I might’ve seen it by accident…” Kihyun actually sounded remorseful, “I’m sorry, Scout. I really didn’t mean to. I’m a gossip, but I’m not an asshole.”

“Its okay, Kihyun,” I sighed, “Its fine. You’re my bunkmate. You would’ve found out sooner or later,” I crossed my arms at my waist and stared at the wall next to me, searching for words to fill the silence, “Well, you were right. You gonna gloat or something?”

“Nah, no need for all that,” Kihyun smiled, “I did call it from the jump, though. I’ve got a good instinct for these things.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay. Don’t let it go to your head,” I chuckled, “So, any burning questions?”

“I mean, I’ve got a few…” Kihyun plopped onto his bed, “When did it become official?”

“Well, I don’t really know that its ‘official’ per se, but things escalated when I went to see him, last night,” My mind wandered back to the feeling of his lips against mine, “We kissed. That’s all.”

The grin grew across Kihyun’s face as he clapped his hands in excitement, “Ooooh, was it magical? Was it like in those old, banned romantic movies?”

“You could say that…” I trailed off again, a contented smile on my face, “It was on his patio. Full moon and everything.”

Kihyun looked as though he was about to scream his head off, but a glare from me quickly turned his voice to a whisper, “Oh my fuck that is ADORABLE!” He flopped back on the bed before suddenly popping back up, “Wait, does Shownu know about all this?”

“Not yet. I’d like to keep it that way for now, until I know what all this is going to be,” I shot daggers into Kihyun’s very soul, “In fact, I’d like to keep this information on a need-to-know basis if its all the same to you.”

“Mum’s the word,” Kihyun crossed his heart with his finger, “Like I said, I love some good tea, but I’m not an asshole. With how long you and I have been roommates and coworkers, I wouldn’t do you dirty like that,” I breathed a soft sigh of relief and walked over to my desk, “I do have one small request, though..”

“Oh, and what’s that?” I chucked.

“Keep me updated on things,” Kihyun’s voice suddenly turned bashful, “It may not seem like it, but I’m a complete hopeless romantic and this whole situation is just too damned cute for words. I need to know how this love story plays out.” His face flushed with embarrassment, “You don’t have to get into gory details or anything, but especially since they banned all the good movies, it’s nice to have a love story in my life, again.”

I looked up from the paperwork at my desk and gave Kihyun a sly smirk, “I suppose I can indulge that as long as you keep your mouth shut, little bleeding heart,” I grabbed a pen from my desk and opened one of my notebooks to a blank page.

Kihyun flopped back onto his mattress again with a contented sigh, his hands clasped to his chest. He glanced over at my furious scribbling, “What’re you working on?”

“Side project,” I said between scribbles, “And this one, I _can’t_ talk to you about. Not yet, anyway.”

“Fair enough,” he got up from his bed, “I’ll hit the shooting range and leave you to it. Just don’t get too wrapped up in it. I wouldn’t want you to miss your phone call,” He mused, “By the way, the supply closet in the gym is a great place to go at night if you need some privacy.”

“Kihyun…” I buried my face into my palm, mostly to hide my own discomposure.

“Alright, alright! I’m going,” Kihyun made his way to the door, “For real, though, Scout. I’m really happy for you. You work really hard all the time. You deserve a little excitement. He better do right by you.” Just like that, Kihyun had sprinted halfway down the hall before I even had a chance to react. I turned back to the sketch-and-scribble-clad notebook page: the beginnings of what I came to call, “Operation: Trojan Horse”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a bit longer than the last one. Hopefully you all enjoyed it all the same. Don't forget, if you want to know the instant my chapters are published, or want to participate in polls that determine the direction of our story, follow me on Twitter! @thehelenwheels is the handle. Have a wonderful day!


	6. The Call From The Closet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout sneaks away for a phone call with Wonho, but something's out to ruin the fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, friends! Shout out to the folks reading this. Your hits and kudos brighten my day. :) 
> 
> This is a pretty short and sweet chapter, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. I'm trying to keep this story fairly easy to digest. 
> 
> No non-con in this chapter. Grab a snack and enjoy!

I spent the better part of three hours writing up the draft of my search-and-rescue mission. A mountain of balled-up paper had begun to form in the tiny trash can next to my desk. I knew what I wanted the plan to be. The tricky part was writing it down in a way that wouldn’t be immediately rejected by the powers-that-be. Bureaucracy always bothered me, even in the time before. Having to paint a pretty picture for someone who will never be down in the trenches the way you are is such a tedious experience. I found myself frequently checking my communicator in hopes it would somehow make time move faster. Finally, the tiny screen read “4:55”. I quickly shut my notebook and made my way back over to the Training Sector, the gym, and then finally, the gym closet. I tapped through the menus on my wrist until I got to my contact list, and then, to his name. I took a deep breath, and then tapped the tiny, green “call” button.

Listening to the digital ring tone fire off was agonizing. First once, then twice, then a longer period of silence and some shuffling before:

“Hello?”

My heart raced with excitement, “Hi, Wonho! Its Scout. Can you hear me okay?”

“Loud and clear! I know its only been a day, but its so good to hear your voice again.”

“Same here. How did your meeting go?”

“Well, I managed to get through this one without falling asleep. That counts for something, I guess,” Wonho’s soft chuckle bounced around the walls of my hiding place, “I’m definitely glad to be out of that clown suit, though. I can barely breathe in that thing.”

“Beauty is pain, they say,” I paced back and forth between the shelves of equipment, “Of course, the closest I come to beauty these days is when I wear my _nice_ pair of cargo pants.”

“What, Crimson doesn’t have a dress uniform?”

“Not really. They never saw a need for one, I guess,” I leaned against the back wall of the closet, sliding down to sit on the floor, “I do miss it sometimes.”

“Dressing up?”

“Yeah. I used to clean up pretty nice back in the day, or so I was told.”

“Hmm,” Wonho paused. I could almost see him tapping his chin with his finger in my mind, “Do you still have anything from the time before?”

“Now that you mention it, I feel like I might still have a suit in my closet somewhere,” I remembered packing my small bag before leaving to join Crimson. As with most trips, I brought some of the most random shit I didn’t end up needing. Most of it was in a plastic tub in the corner of my dorm room, “What’s on your mind?”

“I don’t know how easy it’ll be on your end, with how you have to get here most of the time, but I’d love to take you on an honest-to-God date, sometime.”

“How would you do that? We can’t exactly go anywhere.”

“Well, no, but hear me out. We’ll both get all snazzy, right? I promise, I’ll wear something better looking than my work stuff,” I tried to imagine something that could somehow look better than that, but opted to stall that train of thought before I got too worked up, “I’ll order takeout from my favorite place and a bottle of nice wine and we can go on an old-fashioned date, like people used to do. How does that sound?”

“That sounds wonderful, Wonho. I am so down,” I’m sure he could hear the smile in my voice, “I only wish I could contribute something, somehow. Can’t get much in the way of booze down here, and you _definitely_ don’t want the sludge we eat.”

“Don’t you worry about that. I’ll take care of everything.” Wonho’s voice was determined and resolute, “It’s been so long since I’ve gone on a _date_. I used to love planning things like this, even when the lockdown first hit and we switched to video dating,” He trailed off for a moment, “Come to think of it, I can’t remember the last time I went on a date with someone, on video or in person.”

“Wait, what? I assumed you had to fend off suitors with a broom pole.”

Wonho scoffed slightly, “Hardly. I’d get a few first dates, but most of them were just looking for someone to trade nudes with,” I stifled my laughter, “No one really wants the work of a deeper-level relationship anymore, these days. When everyone is locked down, anything more than a superficial hookup is too much mental work, I guess.”

“I suppose I can understand that,” I pondered aloud, “That’s never really been my style, though. I mean, nudes and sex and whatnot are great, but relationships that were _just_ about that felt…hollow. It just didn’t sit right with me.”

“Exactly! Hollow! That’s the word I was looking for,” Wonho paused a moment, “Wait, have you seen anyone since you joined Crimson?”

“Oh yeah, a few people. Most members try to make some semblance of a relationship work. We’re not above being lonely. It never really worked out, though. Most people couldn’t handle it: The distance, the unreliable communication, the secrecy. Like I told you last night, it’s a lot,” I tried to think back, “I think my last attempt at a relationship was…God…over a year ago.”

“Yeah, its been about the same amount of time for me,” Wonho sighed, “Say, speaking of last night…”

I tried to swallow the nervous lump that had suddenly formed in my throat, “Uh…yeah? What about it?”

“Well, I kind of felt bad that you had to leave so quickly after we-uh…you know…” He exhaled, “I never got the chance to formally ask you out.”

“Oh, yeah, sorry about that. I was on a really tight schedule and I-“ The weight of what he’d just said finally struck me, “Wait, what?”

“Well, I know we sort of talked around it a bit, but I never actually grew a pair and asked you. That was rude of me.”

“Oh, no, Wonho, you weren’t rude. I-“

“Scout?”

“Hm?”

“I really like you. I know a relationship might be difficult, but I want to be with you. What do you think? Do you feel the same?”

I thought back to the moment where I almost shot this guy in the head. Who would’ve thought that, a few weeks later, I’d be hiding on the floor of a dingy gym closet saying:

“Yes.”

An exhale, followed by a nervous laugh trickled from the other end of the line, “Awesome! Great! I’m so glad,” Wonho’s voice was painted with a wave of relief.

“Wait, Wonho, were you afraid I’d say no?”

“Yeah, kinda…” He sighed.

“What? Why?” My voice cracked with laughter.

“Well, I mean, just because you kiss somebody doesn’t mean they’re interested in you. Like I told you before, I’ve dated folks who turned out to only be interested in physical affection. I guess I’m just used to people who don’t want to be in a relationship with someone.”

“It’ll be tough for a lot of reasons,” I drummed the fingers of my other hand on my knee, “But I’m ready to try if you are. The truth of it is, I was pretty attracted to you from the get go,” I paused in thought, “Well, _almost_ from the get go. I had to realize I _shouldn’t_ shoot you in the head, first.”

“From the beginning? Really?” Wonho’s genuine shock surprised me.

“Oh, yeah. I couldn’t stop staring at you. And you were being so kind and sweet and I started getting these feelings for you that I had _no idea_ what to do with. I kept trying to deny it; to stuff it down, but I just…couldn’t. Truth is, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since that first night.”

“Wow…its funny. I was kind of the same way. Took me a little longer, though.”

“Oh, really?” My voice lifted slyly, “That tough to crack, huh?”

“No, no, it isn’t like that! Its just…I knew you were skeptical of this random stranger trying to help you, so I kept my distance at first. I won’t lie, it was hard not to catch feelings when you fell asleep on my shoulder…”

“Oh…yeah…that…” I’d almost forgotten.

“But I did my best to keep things professional. When you asked me to hug you the next day, though…that’s what did me in. It just felt too right,” My cheeks were starting to cramp from smiling, “So, any idea when we should plan our little date?”

“Well, the first supply run for the route I was on last night should be shipping out the same time next week. I can always ask my supervisor to let me tag along as a liaison for the first leg to introduce you to the folks you’ll be housing for the longer runs. That’s my night off, but considering this whole waypoint situation is new to them, I’m sure he won’t turn away the help.”

“Perfect!” The excitement in Wonho’s voice was palpable, “You’re free to stay the night if you want. Bring your dirty clothes, too. I’ll run laundry.”

“Sounds good to me.” I looked at the time, “Shit, it’s getting late. I’ve got to head to dinner before they run out of food. I’m sure it’ll look pretty suspicious if I’m not there.”

“No worries. Do what you’ve got to do. I’ll talk to you soon. Thanks for calling!”

“Thanks for answering. Goodnight, Wonho.”

“Goodnight, Scout.”

With a soft click, the call ended. I stayed on the floor for a few more moments after that, just soaking in everything that had just happened. I was seeing someone again… For the first time in over a year, and it seemed like this was really going to work out.

_“But what happens when he finds out who you really are?”_

I tried to dismiss the thought from my mind, but it persisted.

_“Eventually, he’ll know your little secret. You won’t be able to hide it from him for long.”_

I shook my head vigorously and slapped my own face a few times to snap myself out of it. I kept trying to remind myself to live in the moment, and enjoy the happiness I was feeling right now. Things may change as he learns more about me, but there was no sense killing this before its time. I stood up, dusted my clothes off and headed to the dining hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems Scout's inner demons are starting to come out to play. 
> 
> The next chapter will be uploaded soon! Follow me on Twitter to vote on polls that decide the course of my stories, and to know the minute the next chapter goes live. The handle is @thehelenwheels 
> 
> Thanks again for reading!


	7. Leaving the Nest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout's trainees set out on their first runs as Outriders. Scout tries to find some peace while anxiously awaiting their return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! If you're still reading to this point, thank you very much for your support! Our pace has temporarily slowed, but things are picking up rapidly, so don't worry! No non-con in this chapter.

“Alright, you two! Fall in and let me have a look at your gear!”

The week had been a blur of working on, “Operation: Trojan Horse,” sprinkled with texts and calls from Wonho. Mostly, though, this week had been leading up to tonight: Hyungwon and Jooheon’s first runs as Outriders. The two men stood next to one another in the main corridor, and I moved from one to the other, checking and double-checking everything from the fit of their vests to the cables on their grappling hooks, Shownu looking on behind me. We’d had very little time for training, and I tried to hide my nervousness for them by focusing intently on their equipment.

“Good. Everything looks good. Let’s go over a couple quick things before you head out: What’s the number one rule to being an Outrider?”

“Silent, swift and safe!” Hyungwon and Jooheon shouted in unison.

“Excellent. Jooheon, what do you do if those NOPAH bastards chase you?”

“Run steady, zig-zag and hit the roofs!”

“Correct. Hyungwon, what do you do if you’re detained?”

“Stand strong and say nothing!” The quiver that was once in Hyungwon’s voice had given way to a firm, assured tone.

I stepped back to stand next to Shownu, my hands behind my back to hide their slight tremble. This was the part where I had to hype them the fuck up for this run. I could not let them see me sweat.

“Damn straight. Outriders, what is your mission?”

“Run well! Clear the path! Light the way!” 

“Outriders, who do we fly for?”

“We fly for the voiceless!”

“Outriders, what do we fight for?”

“Hope and justice!”

“Outriders, where do we go?”

“ _Noch Weiter!_ ” Shownu and I joined in until the voices echoed through the entire compound. Jooheon and Hyungwon clapped their arms across their chests in salute.

“Everything you need to accomplish your mission lies within you, now. Remember your training. Stay vigilant. Hide if you need to, fight if you have to. You’ve worked incredibly hard, and I’m so proud to call you fellow Outriders. You have your routes, and if shit _really_ hits the fan or something goes wrong, my communicator is always on. You are the guiding light of hope and justice in a cruel and unjust world. It is our work that paves the way for thousands of sick people across this city to get the care they need. It is our work that clears the path for researchers to find a cure for this terrible virus. You are the pin in the grenade that breaks down the status quo and blows those greedy fuckers sky high.” Jooheon and Hyungwon’s serious stares briefly broke into contemptuous smiles.

I turned to my supervisor, “Shownu, sir, anything to add?”

“The squadron is eternally grateful to you both for stepping up and answering the call to Crimson Underground. Not everyone can do what we do. You’ve received excellent training from Scout, and I feel you’re both fully equipped to carry out the Outrider mission. May this be the first of many, many runs you’ll go on. Run well and come back safely.” Shownu tuned to me and nodded.

“Alright, fellas, you’re free to go. Run well! _Noch Weiter!”_

_“Noch Weiter!”_ The two men turned and entered the elevator heading up to the surface.

“So,” Shownu put a hand on my shoulder, “You getting any sleep tonight?”

“Not a fucking chance,” My shoulders collapsed slightly, “I feel like I just sent my own kids off to war. I’ll be lucky if I’m not glued to my communicator all night.”

Shownu chuckled, “Yeah, I remember my first group of trainees, too. Didn’t get a wink of sleep until they walked through the elevator doors. I practically spent the entire night sitting against that wall over there with my wrist to my face,” He pointed at the wall to our left.

“I just hope I prepared them well enough.”

“You can’t hold their hands forever. They would’ve had to do this sooner or later. Besides, there’s only so much we can teach in a vacuum. Some things, you just have to learn on the job,” I think Shownu could see the concern painted all over my face, “Scout, at least try to get some rest. Worrying your head off doesn’t do them any good, and if they _do_ end up needing your help, you’ll want to be on your A-game.”

“Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point, there.” I shook the energy out of both my hands, sticking them in the pockets of my cargo pants.

“I know I do. Kihyun’s on his run, tonight, so you’ve got your dorm to yourself. Try to relax a bit. That’s an order.”

“Yes, sir,” The response fell out of me instinctively, “I-I’ll try. Thanks for coming out to see them off with me.”

“Happy to do it,” Shownu yawned and stretched, “I’m hitting the hay. 6am comes earlier and earlier, these days. Goodnight, Scout.” He made his way down to his own room.

“Goodnight, Sir.”

I felt two buzzes at my wrist.

_“So soon? Shit.”_ My mind raced through all the possible things that could’ve happened. Did NOPAH find our HQ and stage an ambush? Did their equipment fail? _“I thought I checked everything thoroughly. Shitshitshit.”_ I said a quiet prayer as I glanced down at my wrist:

**_“Hey, babe! Wanted to wish you luck with your sendoff, tonight. I’ll be awake for awhile if you need to take your mind off things. <3” _**

I breathed a deep sigh of relief when I saw Wonho’s name on the vid screen. I started the walk to my dorm, tapping out a reply as I walked:

**_“I’m kind of a fucking mess, not gonna lie. I’ve got the room to myself tonight, so I’ll give you a call in a sec.”_**

My pace quickened into my room until the door clicked shut behind me. I changed into my pajamas as quickly as I could and hoisted myself onto my top bunk, tapping through my communicator and pressing the “call” button.

“Hey, handsome.” My entire body almost-immediately relaxed on hearing his voice, “How you holdin’ up?”

“I’m a nervous wreck,” I rested my right hand on my chest; partly to bring the communicator close to my mouth, partly to try to calm myself down, “They’re out there on their own. I wanted to run with them, but Shownu wouldn’t let me.”

“He trusts you, babe. You gave those guys all the tools they needed to do what they need to do. The rest is up to them, now.”

“But…Wonho, if they get detained, I’ll never forgive myself.” I rolled over onto my side, tucking my knees into my chest.

“This whole situation reminds me of some advice my mom gave me once,” Wonho mused, “She told me, ‘Don’t worry about things you can’t control.’ Yeah, your trainees might get detained, but after a certain point, whether that happens or not is totally out of your control, right? You don’t know when or how NOPAH is going to conduct patrols, you don’t know if they’ve brought more people to their nearby outposts, there are a lot of variables that you can’t do anything to change, right?”

“But…”

“Scout, don’t overthink it. Some variables in this situation are outside your control; yes or no?”

“Y-yes, that’s true,” I won’t lie, hearing Wonho speak so firmly and authoritatively was kind of a turn-on.

“Okay, great. We’re making progress. Now, what about this situation _did_ you have control over?”

“Training the recruits, checking their gear, going over their routes and pointing out common hot zones to avoid.”

“Good, and you did all that, right?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“Great! You’ve done everything you could to address anything and everything about this situation that you _can_ control. If you literally can’t do anything to change the possible outcomes of the situation, what’s the use in worrying about it?”

“Wonho, you’re making _way_ too much sense for my taste, right now,” I chuckled.

“Maybe, but I made you laugh a little, at least,” Wonho sighed slightly, “Look, its completely understandable to be worried about your recruits. You had to train them on a lot of information in very little time, and then fire them off into what can be a very volatile and dangerous situation. Worry is normal, and its totally okay, but you can’t let yourself be consumed by it. It’ll drive you crazy, and if something does go wrong and you have to get over to where they are, you’ll do them no good being frayed at the seams.”

Wonho’s level of emotional literacy left me stunned for a moment, “Jeeze, babe. You sound like you’ve done this before. Are you sure you weren’t in Crimson once?”

“Oh, no,” Wonho giggled, “Believe it or not, owning a café isn’t that different from owning a bar in that you kind of become everyone’s psychologist.”

“That’s right! We’ve never really talked about what you did in the time before,” I traced the side of the communicator with my finger, “Tell me about your café. Any neat stories? Really just talk about anything you want to. It’ll take my mind off things and your voice calms me down, anyway.”

“Hmm…well, it was called, ‘The Leaf and Bean’. We served coffee, tea, smoothies and little sweets and things. It was a pretty small space. We only seated about fifteen people tops. Because we served food and were mostly carry-out anyway, we were one of the last shops on our block to close. We just couldn’t compete with the bigger corporations.”

“I have to think you have some interesting stories from there,” I was trying to change the subject. I didn’t want to make him think about something so sad as closing his business.

“I mean, there _was_ the time I got hot coffee thrown on me.”

“No fucking way,” I gasped, “What happened?”

“Yep. One of my regulars was on a date with this pretty university student he’d been seeing for a bit. Everything was very normal until a _very_ angry woman started walking toward our door…”

“Uh-oh.”

“Yeah, big time. He didn’t even tell _me_ he was married.”

“ _What._ ”

“Yea, it was his wife. She came in yelling and screaming at him. His poor girlfriend turned pale as a ghost. I don’t think either one knew about the other.”

“Oh, no.”

“Anyway, he stood up and ran toward the back of the shop to try and escape out the back door. She grabbed his coffee and threw it trying to hit him. Pegged me instead.”

“Ouch.”

“It gets worse. At the time, I was near our phones trying to figure out whether or not to call the cops. The phone was on the wall in such a way that I was facing away from her…”

“Wait, you didn’t-“

“She was quite a bit shorter than me…and had _terrible_ aim…”

“ _Oh God, NO!_ ”

“Yeah. It basically hit me square in the lower back. I had first degree coffee burns all over my ass.”

“Oh Jesus,” I hissed in sympathetic pain before collapsing into uncontrollable laughter, “I’m so sorry. I don’t mean to laugh. That sounds really uncomfortable.”

“Oh no, you can laugh. Its hilarious to talk about, now.” He chuckled, “I couldn’t sit comfortably for nearly a week. I had this weird waddle to my walk until the burns healed up. My employees didn’t let me live that down for _ages_.” His chuckle gave way to a laugh, “I even got my café nickname out of the whole thing.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. The regular guy had a very unique preference in coffee. He liked it black, but with a _fuckton_ of sugar in it. He always wanted eight pumps of syrup in a medium coffee.”

“I’m not even a coffee drinker and I know that’s a lot,” I grimaced.

“Definitely. Well, after the incident and all the way up until we closed, my employees called me…Sugar Buns.”

“Oh, God, _Sugar Buns_??” I turned my head into my pillow so my cackling laughter wouldn’t wake up half the hallway, “Talk about adding insult to injury!”

“Oh, it was fine. We all had kooky nicknames like that. It was all in good fun. They were kind enough to make sure I was okay before they started calling me that.”

“It sounds like you were a good boss.”

“Eh, I did my best. I know working at a café isn’t the most glamorous job in the world, so I did what I could to keep things fun.”

Wonho paused a moment, “Come to think of it, I never asked…what did you do in the time before? You don’t have to tell me if I’m probing too much.”

“Oh, not at all. I wore a lot of hats back then. I worked retail by day, and go-go danced in some of the clubs at night. I was an artist, but most of my life was trying to earn money so I could pay bills so I could make art, but then never having the time to make art because I was too busy trying to survive” I chuckled.

“An artist, huh? Cool! What medium did you work with?”

I cringed slightly, “Promise you won’t laugh?”

“Of course not! I promise.”

“Makeup. I was a makeup artist.” Much to my surprise, I didn’t hear any laughing on the other end of the line; not even a little bit.

“Makeup? Wow, that’s so cool! I remember seeing the photo campaigns in the fashion magazines at the coffee shop and thinking they were so beautiful. Who on earth would laugh at that?”

“Funnily enough, the people I did makeup on would sometimes,” I thought back to some of the absolutely awful people I’d had to work on over my time in retail, “They’d ask me what my real job was.”

“No way,” Wonho was almost indignant.

“Yeah, babe! It was retail! I mean, I go through some tough shit now, but retail was a special kind of hell.”

“Too true. I won’t lie, I don’t miss the customer service side of things. I’m sure you must’ve had some fun stories too though, right?”

“Oh yeah, plenty! One guy brought in his trans daughter so I could teach her how to make her face look more feminine. That was probably the most rewarding paint I ever did.”

“Wow, that’s so sweet…”

“Yeah, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the store that day. It was adorable how supportive the dad was. He was just so happy watching his daughter slowly falling in love with herself. I know how it feels to not be happy in your own skin, so if I could help a girl get a bit closer to who she was on the inside, I was honored to do it.” I froze, realizing I may have said too much.

“That’s incredible. I had some pretty bad self-esteem issues when I was younger, too. That’s how I first got into working out. Thankfully, my motivations to exercise are a lot healthier these days.” I felt like I’d dodged a bullet.

“Yeah. I was always bigger than the other kids in school growing up. Thankfully running around playing Spiderman has its benefits. I’m fitter than I ever was in the time before.” I tried in vain to stifle a yawn.

“You sound exhausted, babe. You should get some rest.” I hadn’t even been keeping track of the time.

“Aww, but…I like hearing your voice,” I tried to sound as pathetically saccharine as possible. Wonho’s bashful giggle told me I succeeded.

“Your trainees will be back from their run in a few hours. I’m sure you’ll want to greet them when they come back. I’m always here. We’ll talk again soon, okay?”

“Okay…” The last syllable of the word gave rise to another yawn, “I’ll talk to you soon… Sugar Buns.” My attempt to stifle my giggles only turned into an odd, raspy snort.

“Oh, Lord, don’t tell me that’s going to be your pet name for me, now.”

“Nah, I’m just messing with you, babe. Text me when you can.”

“I will, Scout. I promise. Goodnight, babe.”

“Goodnight.” With a simple end-tone, the space was thrown back into a cold emptiness. Thankfully, I was so full of fatigue that I drifted into unconsciousness not long after.”

…

The loud, shrill chime of my alarm jerked me awake a few hours later. I pulled myself from my bunk and slid into the same clothes I’d been wearing earlier the previous night. As tired as I was, I was anxious to see both my trainees walk through those elevator doors safe and sound. I slid on my boots without even bothering to tie the laces, opting instead to tuck them into the sides. I’d just be taking them right back off again when I got back to the dorm. I sprinted down the hallway and got to the main corridor just in time to see Kihyun coming out of the elevator, “Kihyun, hey! Have you seen Jooheon and Hyungwon, yet?”

“Nope, not yet. I got a run all the way to Northeast, though, so I wouldn’t have even run into them,” He stretched his arms above his head and shook his legs out, “It was a quiet night, Scout. They’ll be back,” He leaned against the back wall opposite the elevator.

“You aren’t heading off to bed?” I walked over to join him on the wall.

“Hell no, are you kidding me? I missed their send-off. The least I can do is be here when they come back. I’m part of the team too, you know.” Kihyun was a lot more loyal to the Crimson cause than he ever let on from day to day.

“I know. I appreciate it. I wonder if Shownu will be here, too.”

“I don’t think so. He’s probably looking over whatever you gave him the other day.” In all the chaos of getting the trainees prepared, I’d almost completely forgotten that I’d finished the first draft of the plan and gave it to Shownu to look over a couple days before.

“Thanks for reminding me, I’m supposed to meet with him about that later today.”

“You still haven’t told me what that’s all about, Scout,” Kihyun hooked his thumbs into his Kevlar vest.

“If everything works out the way I want it to, you’ll find out soon enough.”

“Always so cryptic about this shit. I swear…” Kihyun’s interrogation was interrupted by the rumble of the elevator, “See? I told you. Here’s one of them, now!” The elevator door creaked open and a half-concealed figure strided into the corridor. Even before he removed the bandana covering his nose and mouth, I recognized him.

“Jooheon! Congratulations! Welcome back, brother,” Kihyun ran up and firmly slapped Jooheon’s shoulder, “Glad you got through your first run in one piece! Remember, you can’t touch anyone who wasn’t on a run until you get deconned, but Scout’s here to greet you, too,” Kihyun gestured back to me.

Jooheon waved excitedly, “Hey, Scout! I swear, Hyungwon was just behind me. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”

“Welcome back, Jooheon. Congrats on completing your first run! Try and keep as much of what you saw in your head as you can for your report, later.”

“Rodger!” Jooheon saluted just as the elevator began to rumble again, “Oh! There he is!” The elevator creaked open and another cloth-covered face stumbled out. Hyungwon tugged the bandana off his face and leaned over, putting his hands on his knees, “Jooheon…why do you run…so damned fast…” his heaving breaths interrupted each word.

“Hyungwon, welcome back!” Kihyun rushed over, patting the recruit gently on the back, “You okay, buddy?”

“I-I’ll be fine. I just need to…catch my breath,” he puffed.

“Take your time. Glad you made it back! Scout’s here too, but you can’t touch anyone until you’ve gotten deconned.”

“I remember, I remember,” Hyungwon finally stood back up, nodding to me, “Good Morning, Scout. Hyungwon reporting!”

“Welcome back, Hyungwon. I’m glad you both made it back okay. Go get deconned in the locker area and then get some rest. You’ll start your reports first thing this afternoon. Well done, both of you. _Noch Weiter_!”

“ _Noch Weiter!_ ” the recruits and Kihyun echoed back. I turned and started heading back to my dorm room.

“Hey, Scout! Leaving so soon?” Kihyun shouted after me.

“I’m going to rest for a little longer. Worrying about those guys kept me up all night.”

“Sounds good. I’ll try to stay quiet when I come in after decon.” Kihyun disappeared into the locker room.

I stepped out of my boots and climbed back into my bunk, tapping out a text to Wonho:

**_“They’re back safe. Both of them. Thank. GOD.”_ **

I closed my eyes and tried to fall back asleep. My mind wandered back to the meeting with Shownu this afternoon about “Operation: Trojan Horse”. This would be the first he’s ever heard of what I plan to do. I was sure he’d likely take some convincing to be okay with the idea of offering me up as bait to NOPAH’s goons. I ran through the plan I’d written over and over again in my mind; scanning for gaps or loopholes that Shownu could use to dispute it. I couldn’t find a single one. It was risky, very risky, but it was the only way this mission had any chance of succeeding.

I thought about I.M, and all the others who’d been detained since I joined Crimson Underground. How many of them were still alive? What kind of messed up shit was being done to them? No one knew for sure, but I’d read lots of speculation in the research I did writing the plan. They first take you to a local-area prison compound where all constitutional rights are essentially forfeit. They undoubtedly stripped prisoners of all clothing and equipment so it could be searched for clues leading to the locations of our HQs. Torture and drugging were well-documented in propaganda videos released by NOPAH. Waterboarding, bone-breaking, cutting, sleep deprivation, and more amidst 20-hour daily interrogations. If they suspected you had information, they’d go to insane lengths to get it out of you while keeping you barely alive.

I’ll submit and re-submit this mission plan a hundred times until they approve it. Whoever they had there, I had to get them out. At least, I had to try.

I slowly felt myself drifting off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have it! Feel free to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates! @thehelenwheels is the handle!


	8. Sharpening the Talons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shownu hears of Scout's search-and-rescue plan for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, friends! This is a more light-hearted chapter. I tried to mix in a few of these, as the plot will soon be getting quite intense and I like to keep things balanced. Grab a cozy blanket and enjoy! No non-con in this one!

I jolted awake after only a few hours to the aggravating blares of my alarm. It was later than I’d expected. Kihyun was snoozing on the lower bunk. Thankfully, I was still fully dressed from welcoming Jooheon and Hyungwon back that morning. I slid on my boots, grabbed my notebook and pen to take editing notes and set off for Shownu’s office.

“Shownu, sir? Scout reporting for our meeting,” I knocked gently on the side of his office door.

“Good afternoon, Scout. Yes, yes, come in. Close the door behind you,” I followed his instructions, gently latching the door and standing next to the chair across from the route-planning table in the center of his office, “Sit, sit, please,” I sat, flipping my notebook to a blank page and clicking open my pen, “So, you’ve had a chance to look at my plan, sir?”

“I have,” he pulled the chair at his desk over to the table and sat across from me.

“It’s only a first draft. I’m open to any and all edits you think will get it pushed through.”

“Let me just run over the major bullet points to make sure we’re on the same page,” Shownu flipped through the stack of hand-written papers I’d given to him a few days before, “So, _you_ plan to have a GPS tracking device implanted in _your_ body…”

“Yes, sir.”

“And then you plan to go out on a fake run and get _yourself detained_ …”

“Yes, sir.”

“And then a Crimson Underground task force will use that GPS data to find the prison compound, infiltrate it, and rescue whoever is still alive in there?”

“Yes, sir. Sounds like you’ve got the gist of it.”

A heavy sigh passed Shownu’s lips as his gaze darted between me and the stack of papers, “Scout, this plan is insane.”

“I was worried you’d say that,” I tapped my chin with my pen, “Do you have any alternatives to-“

“I’m not finished.”

I straightened up, putting my pen to the page in my lap.

“I’ve read this over and over again and, as crazy as this plan is, I can’t think of another option. The only way we’re going to be able to find where our people are being held is to send a human homing beacon in to show us the way. Its dangerous, risky and downright stupid, but I think this plan does stand a chance at working.”

I was shocked, “T-Thank you, sir.”

“I do have some questions. They’re probably the same questions the Mission Review Board will want answered.”

“Of course.”

“How many members would be on the search-and-rescue task force?”

“Well,” I paused, “I suppose that would largely depend on the size of the facility, the number of guards and the number of prisoners.”

“Ah, but how would we know that? With a GPS implant, we would only know where you were, not who was there with you.”

“Damn,” I tapped my pen against my notepad, “I hadn’t thought of that.”

“Its okay, Scout. That’s why we’re here. Let’s figure it out,” Shownu leaned back in his chair, looking up at the ceiling, “We’d need more than just a way to track you. We’d need a way to get communication from you,” he paused in thought, “You definitely wouldn’t be able to take your communicator in there…”

“What about a wire?”

“A wire?”

“Yeah, like in the old cop shows in the time before. They’d hide a wireless microphone on a witness to capture evidence!”

“Okay, but where are you going to hide a microphone? We can’t put it in your clothes…”

“I’ve got it,” My face lit up, “We could take the microphone from one of the cell phones we use to make communicators and hide it in my mouth!”

“In your mouth?” Shownu seemed simultaneously intrigued and mildly disgusted.

“Yeah! I’m willing to bet Bungdae has some first-aid filling paste on hand. We could disguise it as a tooth filling and pop it in the back of my mouth. I can’t promise I’ll be able to say much, but I’ll figure out a way to tell you how many prisoners there are and how many guards there are.”

Bungdae was our lead medic; a stern, elderly man who’d been a family doctor in a rural town in the time before. He joined Crimson Underground after lack of testing and protective equipment led to his entire town perishing from the virus. His blood ran redder than any of us, and while he wasn’t the friendliest guy in the world, he was a damned good doctor and deeply committed to the cause. He and two former-EMTs made up our medical team. They’d patched Kihyun and I up on several occasions when our runs went sour.

Shownu snapped his finger and tilted his head back toward me, “Now that… is just crazy enough to work. We’ll have to come up with some kind of spoken code. Something with numbers associated with it, but without giving away what we’re quantifying…” He leaned his elbow on the table, resting his head in his hand, “I’ve got it. Scout, do you remember back when we trained you on interrogation defense tactics?”

“Yes, sir.”

How could I forget? That would likely be hammered into my brain for the rest of time. Part of our training was how to handle being interrogated. We memorized a certain, familiar text. Whenever we were probed in interrogation, no matter what the NOPAH grunts asked us, we were to respond with that text repeated over and over again. It gave our minds something to focus on so we wouldn’t crack under the pressure.

I locked eyes with Shownu and immediately understood what he was getting at. I pointed at him as a smile ran across his face.

“The Bill of Rights!”

“Do you still remember it?” Both of Shownu’s hands were on the table as he leaned in closer to me.

“Are you kidding me? With how hard you drilled that into me, I hear it in my sleep!”

“Perfect,” Shownu slapped his hand on the table, “So, you’ll start with prisoner count. When you find out how many prisoners there are, just recite the corresponding Amendment in the Bill of Rights when you’re interrogated. Then, guards. Do your best to count how many different guards you see. Once you figure it out, during that interrogation, recite _that_ corresponding Amendment. That way we’ll know what we’re dealing with without them being any the wiser!”

Along with being a fantastic leader, Shownu was also a military veteran and a master of strategy. I was so grateful to have him in my corner for this mission.

“Okay, next question,” Shownu sat back and looked at the page, “If we look at the worst-case scenario, we stand to lose _a lot_ from this mission. Not only do we risk losing you and the other prisoners, but the entire task force is at risk as well. What makes this mission worth it? How do we minimize that risk as much as possible?”

“This mission would not only improve the morale and functionality of our squadron, but it stands to provide us with valuable intelligence regarding where and how prisoners are kept. If this mission is successful, similar missions could be carried out in other sectors of the city by the other squadrons; potentially bringing dozens of highly-trained members back to Crimson’s numbers. We’ll have a better understanding of NOPAH’s interrogation methods, so we’ll be able to more effectively train our new recruits against them. All of these factors lead to a more efficient, effective execution of Crimson Underground’s core mission.”

“Ah, so you do remember how to bark for the big-wigs,” Shownu raised his eyebrow.

“Woof woof, motherfucker,” I smirked.

“Alright, I think we’ve covered just about everything,” Shownu flipped through the stack of papers one more time, “There is one more thing…” He glanced up at me, “Are you sure you’re game for this, Scout? We’ll have to mount the task force, develop a plan with an exit strategy…it could be weeks before we actually get in there to you. I’ve seen the propaganda videos. I know what these goons are capable of…”

“I know what I’m getting myself into, sir,” I took a slow, contemplative breath, “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared, but this is bigger than me. I’ll do whatever it takes to get our people out of there.”

“I know you would, Scout. I know you would,” Shownu stood up, prompting me to shoot up from my chair, “Everything looks good. Go ahead and type this up with the additions we talked about today and get it to me as soon as you can. I’ll set up a video call for the Board of Commanders to hear this mission plan in a few days.”

“Oh, that reminds me, sir. About the transport this coming week…” I wrung my hands behind my back.

“Oh, yes. As it turns out, it’s a fairly short run, so we shouldn’t need Wonho’s help for that one.”

“Well, I do think it would be polite to at least introduce Wonho to the folks he’ll be sheltering the majority of the time. Would you mind if I tagged along with the first leg of this supply run? I’d get out of their hair after that. I just figure if I’m the point-of-contact for this relationship, I should be the one to help forge the alliance, so to speak.”

Shownu shot me a look of suspicion before that same, sly grin returned to his face, “Ah, I see. Of course! It’s in our best interests to have a strong foundation to this new, ahem, working relationship. You’ll join the transporters for the first half of the run. From there, I’ll go ahead and grant you leave until the following afternoon.”

“Sir, I…”

“Not another word about it, Scout,” Shownu pointed chidingly at me, “It’d be too dangerous to return the same evening. I’m sure Wonho wouldn’t mind providing shelter for the night.”

I could’ve sworn I saw Shownu wink, but I didn’t want to assume and be sorely mistaken. I saluted firmly, “Thank you, sir, and thank you again for your guidance, today.”

“Not a problem, Scout. You’re dismissed. _Noch Weiter!_ ”

“ _Noch Weiter,”_ I echoed, making a hasty, victorious exit and heading over to the computer lab. While on the way there, I opened my communicator and sent a text off to Wonho:

**_“More good news. We’re so on for our date. See you this coming week. <3”_ **

The reply came before I could even lower my arm:

**_“I’m already looking forward to it! <3”_ **

****

…

I basically spent the next three days hulled up in the HQ’s computer lab writing and re-writing the mission plan, trying my best to make it absolutely bulletproof. The computer lab was about as crude as you would expect to find in an underground hideout; a few old laptops and printers we were able to salvage from an abandoned electronics store. Electricity was scarce as was printer paper and ink, so it was rare for me to be printing a document like this. At the same time, Crimson Underground didn’t have an email system for fear it would be bugged and tracked, so we communicated exclusively via encrypted telephone lines and fax machines. Any mission plan or document had to be typed out, printed and faxed to the leaders of the other squadrons.

“Hey, Scout! I never normally see you here this much. What are you working on?”

Minhyuk was our resident technology wiz. In the time before, he worked for an IT company and was studying robotics. I still remember the night we found him. I was out on a run when I heard a bunch of commotion coming from a nearby roof. I went to check it out and saw Minhyuk about to be detained by a group of grunts. I managed to distract them away, and came back to discover he was trying to unlock his internet connection to access banned websites. We talked for a bit, and he was in training within a week.

“Oh, hi, Minhyuk. It’s a mission. Can’t really talk about it just yet. You know how It is,” I hit an icon on the screen and heard the gurgle and rumble of our ancient printer whirring to life.

“Rodger that,” The printer suddenly made a strange rattling sound followed by a long beep, “Not again! Stupid fucking printers,” He ran over to the printer and popped the front of it open, fiddling with the moving parts inside before slamming it back shut and hitting a button on the outside. The printer’s usual whirring resumed, “There. Behave, you little asshole.”

“Everything okay?” I walked over and collected my pages as they were spat out by the machine.

“Oh, just a paper jam. Even in the time before, printers sucked. Not much has changed there,” He walked over to one of the laptops and began wiping the keyboard down with a dust cloth.

“Good to know. Take on any interesting projects, lately?” Along with building and fixing most of our communication equipment, Kihyun would often spend his spare time designing and building new gear for us to test out.

“Not really. I’ve been in kind of a funk when it comes to ideas. There’s only so much you can do with old cellphones and the odd skeleton of a desktop every so often.”

The printer finished the last page and I clacked the bundle of paper on the table to uniform the pages, “Well, if this bad boy gets approved, I’ll have some new projects for you to work on, so cross your fingers for me okay? I’ve got to get this to Shownu. I’ll catch you later, Minhyuk. Thanks for the help!”

“No problem, Scout! Best of luck with the Board. Knock ‘em dead! I need something exciting around here,” He waved as I left.

I peeked in Shownu’s office to see he was on the phone. He waved and held up a finger, “Yes, sir. Understood. I’ll fax the documents to the Board as soon as possible. Thank you again. Goodbye.” He hung up his office phone and looked over at me, “Thank goodness! Is that your mission plan?”

“Oh, uh, yes sir,” I handed him the small stack of typed pages.

“Your timing is perfect. I’m faxing these to the board today. We’re meeting for the review tomorrow.”

“Wait, _tomorrow_?!” My hand instinctively clutched at my chest.

“Yeah, the North sector has a big transport coming up, so it couldn’t wait. That was the last day all the commanders were available for a couple months,” He saw my face turning pale, “Relax, Scout. We’ve talked things over. Just tell the board what you told me. I’ll be right there with you for the video call. Worst case scenario, they turn it down and we’re back where we started.”

I exhaled, “I suppose that’s true. Hell, I’d rather get it over with than keep those prisoners waiting another month or more.”

“That’s the right mind-set. Have you had contact with Wonho recently? We should probably let him know he’ll have company stopping by.”

“Oh yes, sir. I shot him a line after our meeting a few days ago.”

“Maybe you should give him a call tonight and go over the final details for the transport Friday,” He pressed a few buttons on the fax machine across from his desk and began feeding the report through the machine, “Besides, it’ll probably take your mind off the board review for a bit.”

“I- uh, um…” I tried to spit out some kind of witty retort, but to no avail.

“Go on. If you need some privacy, the gym closet is a quiet spot. You’re dismissed.”

_“Jeeze, does everybody know about the damned gym closet but me?”_ I shook my head to focus my thoughts.

“Yes, sir. I’ll do that right away,” I saluted and walked down the next hallway to the gym.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all they wrote! Stay tuned for the next chapter soon! Follow me on twitter to stay up-to-date on when things go live. @imhelenwheels is the handle. Have a wonderful day!


	9. A Board in the Fence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scout goes before the Crimson Underground Board of Commanders to pitch, "Operation: Trojan Horse". What will become of this critical mission?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, all! Apologies for the delay in posting. No non-con in this chapter. Grab a delicious beverage and enjoy!

I woke up the following morning with Wonho’s reassuring voice still echoing in my head. Our conversation had been brief; mostly consisting of logistics for our upcoming rendezvous. Hearing the excitement in his voice when he spoke of seeing me again felt like ice to a sprain; immediately cooling down the anxiety that riddled my mind. I found myself almost excited about going before the Board of Commanders. This is the closest I’d ever come to the possibility of bringing I.M and the others home. Suddenly, the people we’d long assumed were dead drew breath again, even if just for the time being.

I went into my dresser and dug out the nicest-looking pair of cargo pants I had along with their matching military-style blouse and a black t-shirt to wear underneath. I bloused my boots into my pants, “ _Why am I even doing this? They’re probably not going to see my feet,”_ I chuckled to myself as I tucked and rolled and tucked and straightened until I was satisfied with how everything looked. I then grabbed a rucksack that leaned against the bunks, zipping it open and throwing the clothes I slept in inside. I turned and pulled an old plastic bin from next to my desk, wiping the dust off and popping the delicate latch holding the container shut.

Inside were all of the things I’d packed when I left to join Crimson Underground that I didn’t end up needing at all. I hadn’t opened this container in at _least_ four years, but all the clothing inside was surprisingly intact; including an old suit I used to wear to job interviews, weddings and funerals. It was a little wrinkled, but otherwise in fairly good shape. I pulled out the sport coat, trousers, shirt and skinny, black tie, folded them neatly and packed them into the rucksack. I also grabbed the small toiletry bag I normally carried to the bathroom and packed it in the front pocket. I dug through the plastic bin again, looking for the dress shoes I normally wore with this suit, “I know I brought those fuckers with me…”

“Oooh, you brought fuckers? Where? I could use a good time,” Kihyun mischievously giggled at the doorway, “Aw shucks, not the fuckers I was looking for. You’re packing a ruck? Where are you headed?”

“On a brief vacation to Nunya,” I finally found the dress shoes, wrapped them in a bandana and stuffed them into the ruck sack’s front pocket.

“Nunya? Never heard of it. Is that in the South sector?” Kihyun sat at his desk across the room from the bunks.

“Yeah! You know, Nunya Business?” I laughed heartily, “I can’t believe you fell for that.”

“I so didn’t. I knew that was what you were going to say…” Kihyun trailed off, flustered, “Anyway, you promised you’d keep me in the loop. What’s the special occasion?”

He had me there. My word is my bond, and I did promise to keep him updated on everything going on with Wonho, “Well, if you _must_ know, I’m heading out for the first leg of the transport tonight to introduce the team to Wonho.”

“Okay,” Kihyun tilted his head suspiciously, “Why would you need dress shoes for that?”

“Well…I was given surface leave by Shownu to crash at Wonho’s place tonight, since it would likely be too dangerous to try heading back to HQ,” The truth of the matter was I was _so_ excited about this date, and not having anyone to talk to about it was killing me. I was honestly grateful to have let Kihyun in on all the excitement. I looked over to Kihyun as I zipped the ruck sack, “Wonho’s planning a date for us, tonight.”

“Okay, that’s so cute, I’m going to be _sick_!” Kihyun muffled his excited squeals by covering his mouth with his hands, “A date? Like an honest-to-God date?”

“Yep. I honestly have no idea what to expect, but he asked me to dress up, so I dug up my old suit from the time before. Hopefully it still fits.”

“Wait, you just pulled it out of that dusty old bin and threw it in a ruck sack? Aren’t you going to iron it?”

“Well, I don’t really have time to. I’ve got a big meeting in, like, an hour. Besides, I don’t have an iron.”

“Scout, do you even _know_ me?” Kihyun reached under the bunk bed and pulled out a plastic bin of his own. He popped it open and pulled out an old iron and a makeshift ironing board.

“You brought an iron to HQ?” I chuckled, pulling my suit back out of the ruck sack.

“Believe it or not, I was quite fashionable in the time before. I brought it along to get ready for my hookup appointments. Not that _those_ really happen, anymore…” He extended his hand, wiggling his fingers. I handed him the crinkled suit, “Oof, yeah, we can’t have you going on a hot date in this mess. I’ll have this done by the time you get back from your meeting.”

“Kihyun, why are you being so nice all of a sudden?” I buttoned my blouse and looped a belt onto my pants.

“Scout, let’s be honest here: You aren’t exactly a Cassanova,” He dragged the chair at his desk over to his bunk, placing the makeshift ironing board on top of it, “Hell, I don’t remember you ever seeing someone since I’ve been here. I’ve gotta make sure you don’t fuck this up, sweets,” I rolled my eyes, “Besides, I actually used to enjoy doing this kind of stuff. It reminds me of when I’d help my brother get ready for dates.” I’d almost forgotten Kihyun had an older brother on the outside. His family was from a rural suburb. Kihyun had moved to the city to attend university on a track scholarship a few years before everything went south, “Plus, this is helping me procrastinate on finishing my report. Now get going! You’ve got a meeting to get to, right?”

“Oh, yeah,” I checked the time on my communicator. My meeting was in thirty minutes, “Thanks, Kihyun. Seriously, I owe you one.” I grabbed a copy of the mission plan off my desk and headed out the door.

“You just keep telling me all the juicy, cute shit this dude is doing and I’ll keep making sure you don’t go to him looking like a bag of smashed ass. Have fun!” Kihyun called after me as I walked briskly toward Shownu’s office.

…

“Shownu, sir? Scout reporting,” I tapped on the frame of the open door.

“Ah, Scout. You look great. Come in, come in, have a seat,” I sat in one of two chairs seated next to each other in front of the route-planning table. The table had been cleaned off and a laptop with a ball-shaped webcam attached to it had been placed in the center of the table, with its camera facing me, “So, how are you feeling? You ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be, sir,” My hands absent-mindedly fluttered the pages of the plan sitting in my lap, “I don’t really know what to expect, so I’m just rolling with the punches, here.”

“That’s pretty much all you can do for boards like this,” Shownu walked from his desk around to the chair next to me, “We’ve prepared as much as we can. Your plan is excellently written and we haven’t left a single detail unaddressed. The rest is up to them.”

He opened up an encrypted video call software and pressed a passcode to get into the call, “Here we go,” Suddenly the faces of five other figures appeared in little boxes on the screen, “Good afternoon, commanders! This is Shownu reporting. Are the video and audio solid?”

“Loud and clear, Shownu. Nice to see you,” a muffled, deep voice came from the figure in the upper middle of the screen. I’d seen his face before when I was in training, “I assume that’s Scout next to you?”

“Oh, yes sir. How forgetful of me. This is Scout, our Chief Outrider and the architect of the plan you received yesterday,” Shownu nodded to me. I popped a seated salute, clapping my arm across my chest.

“Nice to finally put a name to a face, Scout. Shownu speaks very highly of you,” The upper-middle figure took up most of his video box with his large frame. He was older, around middle age, with tightly cropped, jet black hair and a face weathered by years of experience, “I suppose we should all introduce ourselves for formality’s sake. I am Juyohan, Chief Commander of Crimson Underground.”

Of course! It rushed back to me. Juyohan was a high-level Army officer before defecting to start what would become Crimson Underground after the President wanted him to be the commanding officer of NOPAH. He stays in an undisclosed location to preserve his safety. NOPAH has orders to execute him on sight. He designed all of the training material and documentation tools for the group single-handedly, and trained the first few squads of members himself. I never thought I’d actually talk to him.

“It’s an honor to meet you, sir,” I folded my hands in my lap to stop their shaking.

“Likewise. Now, then. We’ll go around. Arrow, you start.”

A thin, feminine figure on the screen next to Juyohan leaned in toward her webcam, “Arrow. Commander, Sector 1.” Arrow was one of the first women to join Crimson Underground, and one of the organization’s very first Outriders, “Nice to see an Outrider taking initiative. Run well! Clear the path!”

“Light the way!” I tried to maintain decorum and not smile too much, though the urge to was unbearable.

The next figure, a mousy gentleman with thick-rimmed glasses, leaned in toward his camera, “Machina. Commander, Sector 2,”

“Sangja. Commander, Sector 3.” I remembered Sangja, too. He was the leader of the sector I.M worked in before he was transferred here.

“Shownu. Commander, Sector 4.” Shownu bowed his head slightly.

“Rhino. Commander, Sector 5.” Rhino’s massive body took up most of his frame, and his booming voice nearly clipped the microphone on his camera.

“Good. Now that Scout knows who’s who, lets talk over this mission of yours,” A sound of shuffling papers as each commander opened their copy of the plan, “Operation: Trojan Horse is a very…ambitious plan, Scout.”

“Th-thank you, sir,” I wasn’t quite sure what he meant by, “Ambitious.”

“This plan is incredibly dangerous,” Machina interjected, “Its risking the lives of numerous valuable troops, and for what, to maybe rescue troops who, for all we know, are already dead? It’s a fool’s errand!”

“I think it’s a solid plan,” Arrow glanced down at the pages in front of her, “We’d gain a massive upper-hand against NOPAH if this mission succeeds.”

“That’s a pretty big ‘if’…” Machina rolled his eyes, tilting his head to the side, “You’re just backing this because an Outrider wrote it, Arrow.”

“Machina, stand down. I’ll have no bickering in this meeting. Keep it to the facts,” Juyohan’s firm interjection caused Machina to retreat slightly, “Let’s address your concerns with Scout, shall we?” He cleared his throat, “Scout, this plan does carry quite a bit of risk with it. Obviously, we would love to have our detained troops back, but at what cost? What more could we possibly stand to gain that would make this incredibly dangerous mission worth pursuing?”

I looked over at Shownu, who smirked and nodded, “Esteemed commanders, our valuable troops wouldn’t be the only thing we gained from the success of this mission. Crimson Underground would have the exact location of a sector’s detention compound. Not only that, we would have priceless intelligence regarding NOPAH’s interrogation methods, which would allow us to more effectively train new recruits against them. The success of this mission would also open up the opportunity for similar missions to be carried out in other sectors, leading to the return of even more Crimson Underground members. The more troops we have, the more effectively we can accomplish our organization’s core mission: getting priceless equipment where it’s needed the most.”

“What about the equipment _you’ll_ need to carry out this mission?” Machina laced his fingers together and glanced down at the plan, “A GPS implant, a wire disguised as a tooth filling…we don’t have anything like this in Crimson that I’m aware of.”

“Our Engineer, Minhyuk, will be designing and building the equipment,” Shownu chimed in, “He’s designed and optimized plenty of our equipment in the past. I’m confident this is something he’ll be able to turn around with no problem.” Before Machina had a chance to speak, Shownu interjected again, “And our Medic, Bungdae, will perform all installation procedures.” Machina returned his attention to the pages beneath his hands.

“I have a question,” Arrow lifted her finger, “Scout, how would you go about preparing for a mission like this; not just physiologically, but psychologically?”

“Excellent question, Commander,” I took a beat to compose my thoughts, “I plan to double up on endurance-based physical training, as well as continuing a regular, daily meditation practice to build mental resiliency. I am fully aware that there are some things in this mission that I’ll likely never be able to completely prepare for, which is why I’ll also be leaning on the powerful support system I have within my squadron and its leadership when I return.”

“ _If_ you return,” Rhino pointed at the camera, “They may just kill you.”

“With all due respect, Commander, that’s highly unlikely. NOPAH infantrymen are always directed to bring Crimson Underground members in _alive._ Their primary mission is to crush dissent; and the only way they could possibly do that would be to collect as much intel on Crimson Underground and its activities as possible. They seem to think that, by interrogating and torturing our members, they’ll get the information they seek. It’d be in their best interests to keep the other troops and I alive as long as possible.” I wanted to make it clear I wasn’t phased by Rhino’s grim words. My tone turned bone-cold, “I may still be killed as a result of this mission, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take. In my mind, its no different than the risk I take any time I set foot on the outside to run a route.”

“I will admit, the idea of using the Bill of Rights as a communication tool is pretty brilliant. Sounds like something you would come up with, Shownu,” Sangja tapped the paper with his finger.

“You got me, Sangja. I may have had something to do with that part…” Shownu leaned in toward me, blocking his mouth from the camera’s view, “Sangja and I trained together. I helped him memorize the Bill of Rights by flicking his forehead every time he messed up. He had a finger, shaped bruise on his face for a week,” I pursed my lips to stifle a giggle as Shownu turned back to the cameras.

“Does anyone have any more questions for Scout?” The Chief Commander looked into his camera.

For a moment, the room was silent. The only sound was the low hum of the computer.

Juyohan cleared his throat and leaned in closer to the camera, “Very well, if there are no more questions, we will proceed with the vote. Shownu, since Scout is under your command, you will abstain from this vote.”

“Understood, Chief Commander,” I looked over to see Shownu’s fingers crossed in his lap. I crossed my own and took a deep breath.

“I will call for votes by commander. You will vote either to approve or deny. Arrow?”

“Approve.”

I kept track of the votes in my head, _“That’s one.”_

“Machina?”

“Deny.”

“Sangja?”

“Approve.”

_“That’s two. Two to one in favor,”_ I steadied my breath.

“Rhino?”

“Deny.”

_“Shit. A tie.”_

“Shownu, sir,” I leaned in, hiding my mouth with my hand, “What happens in the event of a tie? It looks like they’re deadlocked.”

“Usually if the rest of the board is in a stalemate, the Chief Commander makes the final call,” Shownu sat back, drumming his fingers on his leg.

“Hmm,” Juyohan leaned back in his chair, “It seems we have a deadlock,” He brought his hand to his chin in thought before sitting back up again, “Scout.”

“Y-yes, Chief Commander,” I straightened up.

“This mission is extremely dangerous. A lot could go wrong, and it puts a sizeable group of troops at risk…”

_“Shit,”_ My head dropped slightly as I felt my heart sinking into my stomach.

“However, after hearing you defend your proposal before this board, I am encouraged by your bravery, strength and resolve. You’ve put tremendous thought into this plan, and the confidence you have in your squadron is inspirational. One of the things I admired most about the Army was that they never left a soldier behind. I defected, among other reasons, because it seemed the government had forgotten the principles on which this country was founded. I think its high-time Crimson Underground set the example of what it means to leave no one behind. With these things in mind, the Board of Commanders approves this mission as top priority. You will have whatever support you need from the Board and myself to execute this mission as quickly and completely as possible.”

It took me a moment to process what Juyohan had just told me, “Thank you. Thank you so much, Chief Commander. Thank you, esteemed board.”

“I echo Scout’s gratitude, and thank the board for lending its time, attention and support to this mission,” Shownu bowed slightly.

“Shownu, keep me informed of the mission as it progresses. I expect periodical reports leading up to execution,” Juyohan leaned in toward the keyboard, “With that, this board meeting is adjourned. _Noch Weiter!”_

_“Noch Weiter!”_ Everyone else on the call echoed Juyohan as the video feeds terminated one by one, ours included. Shownu and I rose from our chairs and he closed the lid of the laptop. He turned to face me, placing a hand on my shoulder, “I knew you could do it. Congratulations, Scout,” Much to my surprise, he pulled me in for a friendly hug before pulling away, “Don’t get used to that. It doesn’t happen often,” I chuckled as he carried his chair back over to his desk, “The real work is just beginning. We have a lot to do to get ready for this mission. I’ll inform the rest of the squadron of what’s going on in the morning. For the time being, though, you have a transport to escort. They head out in an hour. Get yourself packed and go celebrate. This is a huge victory. You’re dismissed. _Noch Weiter!_ ”

“ _Noch Weiter!_ Thank you, sir,” I saluted, turned and made my way back to my dorm room, raising my fist in triumph along the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like the world needs a few more happy outcomes, don't you? Thank you so much for reading!


	10. New Friends and Old Enemies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After weeks of anticipation, Scout embarks on a visit to introduce Wonho to the suppliers: Ravi and Sik-K.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, friends! Apologies for the delay in posting. I'm actually having surgery in a few days, so my life has been a flurry of preparation. I should be uploading chapters a little more frequently once I recover a bit. Thanks for being so patient! 
> 
> No non-con in this chapter, but lots of warm-fuzzies. Enjoy!

By the time I made it back to the room, Kihyun had my suit impeccably pressed, neatly folded and placed in a plastic bag, “Technically a suit like that should be hung up, but you’re _not_ wearing that on the transport. It’ll be a wreck again by the time you get to the apartment.”

“Thanks again, Kihyun. It looks great!”

“How’d your meeting go?” I froze for a moment. Now wasn’t the time to let Kihyun in on the details, “It went well! Really well. Shownu will have more details for you tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I’ve got to get going. See you tomorrow afternoon, sometime!” I packed up the suit and headed for the door.

“Have fun! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” I couldn’t help but smile as I popped into the locker room, geared up, and jogged down the hallway, hoisting my ruck sack onto my back.

I got back out to the main hallway to find Ravi and Sik-K waiting for me by the elevator, surrounded by four ruck sacks stuffed to the brim, “I didn’t keep you waiting too long, did I?”

“Hey, Scout. Nah, you’re solid,” Suppliers were the meat and potatoes of Crimson Underground. They were the ones who actually transported treatment and testing supplies to hospitals and research labs. They ran these supplies underground in trains of small carts; one supplier in front and one behind. Ravi had been our Lead Supplier since I.M was detained. He was tall and slender with dark, amber-brown hair that was covered by a black beanie. Ravi was extremely strong. I’d seen him pulling whole cart trains by himself. His voice was deep and loud when it had to be, “I heard we’re meeting your connect on the outside, tonight.”

“Well, he’s technically I.M’s connect. I can’t take all the credit, but yeah, you’ll meet him tonight. He’s a nice guy; very eager to help. I think you’ll get along great.”

“Any friend of I.M’s is a friend of mine,” Sik-K was slightly shorter than Ravi, but strong in his own right. He’d managed to fight his way out of quite a few close calls with NOPAH grunts in his day. His pale blonde hair was peeking from the bottom of his beanie. had only been in our squadron about a year, but I.M was his mentor through most of his training. They’d built a tight bond in a pretty short time, “You ready to roll out, Scout?”

“Ready when you are,” I pulled a black beanie over my head and put a cloth mask over my nose and mouth, “Let’s do this.”

Ravi and Sik-K donned their own masks and scooped up the ruck sacks of medical equipment and all three of us stepped into the elevator, “This is a pretty small delivery for you guys, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Ravi rolled his head from side to side to stretch his neck, “Research lab in the Southwest needed some basics. Gloves, pipettes, N95 masks, simple shit. Easy drop and we had the gear on hand from the last acquisition, so the squadron jumped on it.” The elevator shuddered to a stop and we stepped out of the doors and made our way up to the street. Ravi reached under the ruck sack strapped to his chest and grabbed his pistol, “Scout, lead the way up front and I’ll watch the rear.”

“You got it, Rav,” I kept my hand trained on my own holster and started heading toward Wonho’s apartment. This route felt much longer during a supply shipment. Outriders would sometimes be sent with the Suppliers to help keep an eye out for grunts along the route. Especially when they were hauling heavy equipment, suppliers moved more slowly, making them extremely vulnerable to capture. There were no Outriders available to walk with I.M’s team the night he was detained. Part of me thought that, if I had been there, I could’ve prevented it. I tried to shake my wandering thoughts and focus on the task at hand.

“Yo, Scout, you good?” Sik-K placed his hand on my shoulder. I looked up to find we’d reached an intersection.

“I’m fine. Just thought I saw something.” I waved us forward and the three of us shuffled quickly across the barren street. I started seeing those familiar landmarks, “We’re almost to Wonho’s apartment,” We crossed another street, and then another, and ducked into the familiar alleyway, “We’re here. His apartment is on the top floor.”

“Ugh. Of course it is. My back is killing me just thinking about that climb,” Sik-K looked up at the top balcony.

“Relax, Sik-K. There’s a fire escape against the far wall. Let’s see you put all those pull-ups in the gym to work,” Ravi jumped onto the ladder leading to the fire escape, climbing up to the first landing, “Need a lift, Scout?”

“Nah, you know me: I take the shortcut,” I waved my grappling hook, tossing it up to the roof and tugging on the line, “I’ll head up and let him know you guys are coming. Just hang out on the balcony until I come back out.” The two men nodded and began climbing the stairs of the rusted fire escape. I pulled myself up the rope until I got to Wonho’s floor. I stepped over the balcony railing and reeled in my hook. I saw a light on in the nearby window and heard rustling inside. He was waiting for me, this time. I took my beanie off my head and knocked at the glass door. My heart started skipping around my chest and the foggy clouds of my breath got closer and closer together. I’d been waiting _weeks_ to see him again, and we’d bonded quite a bit in the meantime. After a brief moment of quiet, I saw his broad silhouette hastily stride toward the door. The handle turned and out came the smiling face of Wonho, partially covered by a black cloth mask.

“Oh, excuse me, sir. I have a date with Wonho tonight. Is he home?” I smirked, hooking my thumbs into my pockets.

Wonho lowered his mask from one of his ears to reveal a mischievous smile, “Get those boots off and get your sexy ass in here.” I practically jumped out of my boots and crept quickly through the door, popping off my mask as I went.

Within moments, Wonho’s arms were around my waist and his lips were on mine. The kiss nearly knocked me backwards. I threw my hands in the air to keep from touching him, trying to get words in between his voracious osculation, “Wonho, I-mmm…I need to…wash my hands…” Wonho broke away, “Ah, sorry. I got a little ahead of myself. Go ahead.” I rushed into the bathroom to wash my hands, glancing at Wonho in the bathroom mirror’s reflection. He was already dressed for the night’s festivities. A slim-cut, black three-piece suit with a steel-grey dress shirt and a thin, black tie. His hair was consciously quaffed, if slightly disheveled from his enthusiastic greeting. He looked drop-dead gorgeous leaning against the counter of his kitchen island. He was firmly tapping his forehead with his fist. I hoped I hadn’t embarrassed him too badly. I toweled off my hands and set my ruck sack down on the floor across from the toilet. I walked out of the bathroom and back toward him, “Now, where were we…”

“Scout, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have come on so strong. I just got so excited to see you, I-“ I pulled his arm to spin him toward me, slid my hand behind his head and pulled his mouth to mine. I felt his body start to relax as his hand came to rest on the side of my face. I could taste the slight hint of peppermint on his breath as we shared air for a forbidden moment. I softly caught his lower lip between my teeth before pulling away, “Shush. No need to apologize. You look gorgeous,” I tugged playfully at the collar of his suit jacket.

“So do you, babe.”

“Oh, this? This isn’t even what I’m wearing, tonight. We’ve got some work-related business to take care of, first.”

“That’s right! I’m supposed to meet your colleagues, aren’t I?” Wonho sheepishly looked down at his suit, “I feel a bit over-dressed.”

“You’re fine. Like, so damned fine…” I trailed off, biting my lip before snapping out of my amorous daze, “I just had to wear something else to get here so my nice clothes wouldn’t get messed up,” I snaked a couple fingers under his tie, pulling him into another kiss, “The team should be waiting on the balcony by now. They don’t know that we’re… involved, so don’t be surprised if I keep my distance.”

“Rodger. Mum’s the word,” Wonho winked as we both put our masks on and headed back out to the balcony. Sure enough, Ravi and Sik-K were stretching their backs on the balcony; their ruck sacks leaning on the railing, “Fellas, this is Wonho. He’ll be shacking you up during the longer runs along with providing a hideout if things get hot. Wonho, this is Ravi and Sik-K.”

“Nice to meet you both,” Wonho bowed slightly, “I’m happy to help with whatever you need.”

“We appreciate it, Wonho. Its nice to have a friend on the outside. Good to meet you,” Ravi nodded.

“Scout told me you were fiends with I.M. Is that true?” Sik-K hooked his thumbs into his vest.

“It is. I.M and I were very close. He’s like a brother to me…” Wonho trailed off slightly, glancing at his feet.

“He was a great troop. Any friend of his is a friend of ours.” An eerie silence fell over the balcony for a brief moment.

I decided to hastily change the subject, “Anyway, when you guys shack up here, you’ll leave any and all equipment underground in the tunnels. Whether it’s a quick rest or a hot shower, Wonho is ready, willing and able to help us however we need it. I’ll be your point of contact when it comes to him, so keep me in the loop when you’ve got longer supply runs coming up so I can give him adequate notice. If you have any questions or requests for him, they’ll go through me as well.”

“Makes sense to me,” Sik-K stretched his arms over his head.

“Rodger,” Ravi grabbed one of his ruck sacks and slung it over his back, “Say, Sik-K, we should get moving. If we play our cards right, we should be able to get back to HQ before sunrise.”

Sik-K seemed almost-disappointed that he couldn’t rest longer, but reluctantly strapped his own ruck sacks on his back and chest, “Scout, you coming along, too?”

“Nah, Shownu gave me surface leave for the night, so I’m going to go over some logistical things with Wonho for a bit. Arrive safe and come back intact, you two. _Noch Weiter!”_

_“Noch Weiter!”_ The two looked at one another quizzically before waving their farewells and beginning their slow descent down the fire escape steps.

After they were out of sight, Wonho walked behind me and snaked his arms around me, leaning his chin on my shoulder, “You know they probably didn’t buy that excuse at all, right?”

“I know…” I dropped my head back into Wonho’s chest, “Cut me some slack! I’m _trying_ to keep a low profile, at least. My relationships are on a need-to-know basis, and there aren’t that many people that need to know, right now.”

“Oh, who cares if they find out? What difference does it make?” Wonho pulled away and started massaging my shoulders.

“Office politics, babe. When a Crimson Underground member gets in a relationship, the whole squadron jumps up their ass to make sure they aren’t getting distracted from the mission. Its not too terribly debilitating, but its just more trouble than its worth.” My head dropped as he continued working over the knots in my neck, “Be careful. If you keep doing this, I’ll be passed out before dinner,” I groaned beneath the delicious ache of his thumbs.

“Oh shit, dinner,” Wonho popped his slippers off, “It should be arriving any minute now. I haven’t even set anything up, yet! Shit. He popped the door open, waving me inside, “Why don’t you go freshen up and get changed while I take care of some things.”

“Yes, sir. Don’t have to tell me twice.” I stepped back inside, removing my mask and heading back to the bathroom.

“Take your time! I’ve got some catching up to do…” Wonho turned his attention to his cellphone as I closed the bathroom door.

…

I turned the shower water on and removed my suit and shoes from my ruck sack. Kihyun was kind enough to include a hanger, which I made use of, hanging the shirt, jacket and slacks on the towel rack. I slowly disrobed; folding my clothes and putting them in the ruck sack. At one point, I turned around and saw my reflection in the mirror above the sink. My eyes followed my bare torso down to the horizontal scar stretched across my chest; a mark from a battle very different than this one. Suddenly, a voice rang out clearly in my head:

_“He’ll soon find out you’re a fraud.”_

I tried to shake it, but the voice continued:

_“What’s going to happen when he gets under all those clothes and doesn’t see what he was expecting?”_

I braced against the sink. It kept talking:

_“He’ll think you’re a freak. A fake. A liar.”_

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and turned on the sink spout, splashing some cool water on my face. I cranked the water back off and looked at my reflection again. Thankfully, the voice had stopped. For now, at least. The perk of having a familiar enemy is knowing exactly how to subdue them. I stepped in the shower to wash the dreary anxiousness off my body. I recalled the last time I’d set foot in this shower, and how much had changed since then. I gently reminded myself that it was okay to be happy. I reminded myself that the voice that had echoed in my head earlier was irrational; that I was valid where and how I was in this moment. Before long, I was feeling back to mostly-normal and the bathroom had filled with a lovely fog of steam. I turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, toweling myself dry.

I’d forgotten how lengthy a ritual it was to put on a suit. Even after layering everything just so, I still found myself spending an extra 15 minutes fussing with my shirt to make sure it was tucked in smoothly. I was surprised that, after all this time, I still knew how to tie a tie. I looked at myself in the mirror. My suit was a bit snug in some places, but fit for the most part, and I looked decently presentable. I shot my reflection some confidence-building finger guns and opened the door to the bathroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for reading if you've read this far. The next chapter is definitely going to be worth a read. Cheers!

**Author's Note:**

> That's all for Chapter 1! I've got the first few chapters of this story already written, but I'm always posting on Twitter for input on this and other fanfics I'm working on, so follow me there! @thehelenwheels


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